MUNCY TOWNSHIP -- All this month the Lycoming Mall is not only a place to shop, it's also a place to learn about history. The Muncy Historical Society is sponsoring an exhibit called "Passages to Freedom". It's all about slavery and the Underground Railroad.
"This exhibit gives you a global perspective of why slaves, why they wanted to escape and how they escaped," Bill Poulton said.
On this day, close to 200 fifth and sixth graders from the Muncy Area School District toured the exhibit.
"I'm learning all about the Underground Railroad and how it worked," Marley Derr said.
"I think it's an amazing experience for anyone to come and learn," Kaleb Meyer said.
Muncy Historical Society members gave the children a tour of the exhibit.
Executive Director Bill Poulton says Lycoming County played a big role in the Underground Railroad through the end of the Civil War.
"This exhibit hopefully is going to show them that yes, the Underground Railroad did come through Muncy and Williamsport, but it was not just our area," Poulton said.
Poulton said there are still safe houses standing in Lycoming County, including one just outside Muncy.
Passages to Freedom is a traveling exhibit and this is its only stop in Pennsylvania. The Muncy Historical Society paid $3,500 to get it here and did so by fundraising and getting grant money.
"We also partnered with the Lycoming Mall. They were kind enough to give us this space," Poulton said.
The children say they enjoyed learning about this part of our nation's history.
"How they caught and shipped the slaves from Africa to the United States," Derr said.
"Probably the story about the person who mailed himself away to Philadelphia," Meyer said.
The Passages to Freedom exhibit will be at the Lycoming Mall through the end of the month.