Butler County early adopter of semiquincentennial planning
MUDDY CREEK TWP — The parade celebrating Butler County’s 200th birthday in 2000 was about five hours long.
Jack Cohen, president of the Butler County Tourism & Convention Bureau, said the county can do even better for the U.S.’s 250th birthday, or semiquincentennial, which will be celebrated in 2026.
One way Cohen said the county can break the parade record in four years is to have every municipality, organization and agency in Butler County have an entry displaying what makes them special.
“Every community should have something in the parade,” Cohen said. “Every community has something special, and we should show it off at 250.”
Pennsylvania is one of the first states to begin planning for America’s semiquincentennial, and Butler County was one of the first counties to sign on with the state’s planning organization, America250.
On Wednesday, administrators with America250 joined Butler County officials on a cruise on Lake Arthur at Moraine State Park to brainstorm ideas of how to make the semiquincentennial special.
Jaclyn Victor, director of partnerships and engagement for America250, said representatives of the organization are meeting with county advisory commissions, which Cohen leads in Butler County, to plan events to celebrate the 250th anniversary.
“We will be working as a group in Pennsylvania to coordinate the 250th,” Victor said. “Now we are trying to make sure this effort is something every Pennsylvanian can be involved with.”
America250 is organized through the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission, created by Congress in 2018, and its supporting nonprofit America250 Foundation, according to Victor.
Victor said all of the living Pennsylvania governors are involved with America250. Former Gov. Tom Corbett stepped on to Preston’s Pearl to talk about the opportunity America250 presents to the state to bring people together toward a common goal.
He also said discussing history is a good avenue to base the semiquincentennial celebration on.
“We have a very diverse state, I call it six states,” Corbett said of Pennsylvania. “The people are different in each one of those regions — that’s the beauty of our state and our country.
“Everybody has their own view, and a lot of that depends on our history and talking to people about our history.”
Victor said nearly 40 of the state’s 67 counties have signed on to be part of America250.
In addition to the Butler County Tourism & Convention Bureau, the Butler County Board of Commissioners and other administrators and the Butler County Chamber of Commerce are involved with America250.
Bri Farrand, communications director for America250, said the gathering Wednesday was a good opportunity to get everyone in Butler County on the same page in terms of how it will commemorate 250 years.
“The event today is just to get exposure out on the county level,” Farrand said. “Each county has its own personality, and we want to see every county come together to celebrate the diversity.”
Victor said she and other America250 staff will continue meeting with representatives in counties statewide to ensure that the semiquincentennial celebration plans are in place in as many places as possible.
“We believe every county has something that is Pennsylvania proud, so we hope each county takes that and runs with it,” Victor said.
Cohen said the tourism bureau will continue working with the committee on plans for the nation’s 250th birthday. He said he is glad to get the county involved in the planning early, because the milestone deserves a celebration.
“We need help to plan events like this,” Cohen said. “We’re going to start planning now so that when 2026 comes around we’ll have something really special.”
For more information on the semiquincentennial, or to contribute ideas, visit america250pa.org.
