The Parish House building which serves as the museum for the Hummelstown Area Historical Society was built in 1815 as the Zion Lutheran Church, the second congregation organized in 1753, which had dedicated its first edifice, a log structure, in 1766.

Upon erection of the new brownstone church in 1893 the old building was used for community activities including a public library and reading room. Literary and musical programs were held to share both local and outside tales, but these activities succumbed to declining interest by the end of the century. In 1911, the tower was completely removed and the entire building was remodeled to accommodate the Sunday School which had outgrown its quarters in the 1893 building. Since then its appearance has remained essentially unchanged. During a period when the Hummelstown Public Schools were overcrowded the lower rooms served as classrooms. The rooms became available for public use in 1965 and after a time of declining use, the Lutheran congregation granted the building’s use to the Historical Society in November of 1971.

In this building you will find more than 14,000 items which reflect the way of life in Hummelstown for more than two centuries.

The Parish House and the adjoining cemetery stand on land deeded to the Lutheran congregation by Frederick Hummel who founded the town in 1762, laying out into lots a tract of land originally warranted to Henry Chambers in 1744. This section for which he paid 200 pounds sterling became the center of the present town. The founder’s last resting place is marked by a monument in the cemetery just north of the building.

The Hummelstown Area Historical Society leased the Parish House from the Lutheran Church from 1971 until 2012, when the building was officially purchased by the Hummelstown Area Historical Society after an incredibly successful Community Campaign.