The State College Choral Society is a 100-member choral group that been performing regularly around Centre County since 1948. The society began as a 35-member chorus organized by the State College Women’s Club. Starting in 1949, men joined the choir.
Eisenhower Auditorium is Penn State’s primary theatrical performance center. The building opened in 1974 and was later named for former University President Milton S. Eisenhower. It hosts about two hundred concerts, theatre and dance performances, Penn State commencements, and other events annually.
Philip Fischler Hallock was a professor at Penn State whose design of residential and commercial projects contributed to the growth of modern architecture in Centre County in the middle of the twentieth century.
The Boalsburg Heritage Museum preserves the history of the Centre County village known for the Boal Mansion, Pennsylvania Military Museum, and Memorial Day celebration. The museum is in the Boalsburg historic district that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Boal Mansion is the ancestral home of one of Centre County’s most distinguished families. Since 1952, it has been operated as a museum.
Harold Altman was an internationally known artist who lived and worked in Centre County for more than forty years. He is best known for his lithographs, which include scenes of the county. Altman was a prolific artist who produced thousands of lithographs, etchings, drawings, and paintings.
The Nittany Valley Symphony is a community orchestra that has been performing in Centre County since 1967. The symphony was organized by Ann Keller of State College to perform at the first Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts. She recruited local musicians, most of whom held other jobs.
The American Legion & Auxiliary Junior Drum and Bugle Corps was a popular activity for Centre County youth for about twenty-five years in the mid-20th century. The State College corps won several state championships and, in 1941, a national championship.
The Little German Band is a popular State College-based group that has been performing around Centre County since 1960. The band got its start when a group of HRB-Singer employees who were musicians played Christmas carols in the German “oompah” style.
The Bellefonte Victorian Christmas is a two-day holiday event that looks back at the borough’s history. The event was founded in 1981 to remember how the holiday season was celebrated during the heyday of Bellefonte during the 1800s and has grown over the years to become a popular family tradition.