Sip, Savor, & Learn: Carpentry Tools that Built Lancaster

By HPTrust Manager | July 12, 2025

Wednesday, September 10, 2025 | 5:30 PM
Sehner-Ellicott-von Hess House, 123 North Prince Street, Lancaster, PA
$35 per person | Limited to 40 guests

Join the Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County for our September installment of the Sip, Savor, & Learn Speaker Series as we uncover the fascinating world of early carpentry and the tools that helped shape Lancaster’s architectural legacy.

📅 Event Details

  • Date: Wednesday, September 10, 2025

  • Time: Happy Hour begins at 5:30 PM | Presentation at 6:30 PM

  • Location: Sehner-Ellicott-von Hess House, 123 North Prince Street, Lancaster, PA

  • Cost: $35 per person – includes heavy hors d’oeuvres and an open bar provided by Roaming Libations

  • Registration: Attendance is limited to 40 guests. Reserve your spot today!

🍷 Come early for Preservation Happy Hour in the historic surroundings of the Sehner-Ellicott-von Hess House. Sip on your favorite drink, savor delicious hors d’oeuvres, and mingle with fellow history and preservation enthusiasts before settling in for an engaging presentation.

Todd Hostetter

🪚 Carpentry Tools That Built Lancaster: Joiners & Planemakers, 1760–1882
Discover the often-overlooked artisans of Lancaster County’s past—joiners and planemakers—who crafted not just furniture, but the very tools that shaped our historic homes and buildings. From window sashes to staircases and intricate molding, their work formed the bones and beauty of our built environment.

Presenter Todd Hostetter, a Manheim Township historian and collector of early Lancaster tools, will guide us through the world of 18th- and 19th-century toolmakers. Learn about the families behind these “mom and pop” workshops, their craftsmanship, and their contributions to the region’s architectural heritage.

Todd is a published researcher, volunteer cataloguer at the Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum, and administrator of the Facebook group 1700’s & 1800’s Planemakers–Toolmakers of South-Central Pennsylvania. He also curates “The E.W. Carpenter Project,” a website dedicated to one of Lancaster’s most prominent 19th-century planemakers.

🔨 You’ll meet three local families, each with their own unique contributions to Lancaster’s toolmaking history, and gain a new appreciation for the hands—and hand tools—that helped build our community.

🎟️ Space is limited and our Speaker Series events often sell out—register now to guarantee your spot!

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