On September 13, 2024, the third celebration for Free Frank Freedom Day, after events in 2019 and 2021, was held in Barry, Illinois. Several groups including the Barry Historical Museum, Barry City Council, Pike County Historical Society, the First Baptist Church of Barry, Pinkerton Prairie Daughters of 1812, and the New Philadelphia Association came together […]

In a significant milestone, the New Philadelphia Association (NPA) has successfully transferred the first tract of property to the National Park Service (NPS) for inclusion in the New Philadelphia National Historic Site, the nation’s 424th national park. This nearly 25-acre parcel, known for its historical importance as the first town officially platted and registered by […]

The annual Marvin J and Thomas Leo Likes Lecture Series will take place each Tuesday evening in June at 7 pm DST beginning June 6. With several years of online success, we gather online again this year, via Zoom. The Likes Lecture Series began in 2004 as part of the archaeology NSF-REU field school conducted […]

In February, WGN Radio’s Dave Schwan visited the New Philadelphia townsite and spoke to the people who helped get the attention of the National Park System. Click here for the story.

NPA board member Charlotte King is an Alum of the University of Maryland. The article discusses King’s involvement with the townsite and her contributions that led to the site becoming part of the National Park System. Click here to read the article. 

On February 28th, The New Philadelphia Association and the National Park Service held a press event and signing celebration to begin the process of conveying cost-free, property owned by the New Philadelphia Association to the National Park Service.

Looking for Lincoln has announced the creation of a documentary short about New Philadelphia entitled New Philadelphia Illinois: A Racially Diverse Community on the Illinois Frontier. Click here to read more.

Every June the Likes Lectures tell freedom stories that relate to New Philadelphia.  We will gather again this year to hear four stories every Tuesday in June at 7 p.m. In 2023, the dates are as follows; June 6, 13, 20, and 27th. The series began in 2004 as part of the archaeology NSF-REU field […]

Author Christine Ledbetter shares the story of Free Frank. Click here to read the article.

Dec 29, 2022—It’s official: New Philadelphia, Illinois, is a unit of the National Park Service.  Just over a century after Free Frank founded the town of New Philadelphia, an act passed by the Senate and House, and signed by President Joe Biden, established the New Philadelphia National Historic Site as a unit of the National […]