Free Things to Do at Valley Forge National Park in Pennsylvania

Valley Forge National Park remains one of the great family, historic places to visit in Pennsylvania, located about twenty miles outside of Philadelphia. Besides visiting many of the landmarks situated around the park, there's plenty of open ground and trails. Take some time and enjoy all that the park has to offer. There's a lot of free things to do at Valley Forge.

Welcome Center

Free things to do at Valley Forge begin with a visit to the Welcome Center. The Welcome Center is an ideal starting point for any visit to Valley Forge National Park, which is open from nine to five daily with parking available without cost. Maps and tour information can be obtained. An exhibit entitled, Determined to Persevere, features an interesting display of historical information and artifacts. A park employee, at various times, presents some history about the exhibit.

Movie

Free attractions at Valley Forge include watching a brief, informative movie entitled, Valley Forge: A Winter Encampment. The movie displays every half hour and gives an informational dialogue about the life and times of Valley Forge during the Revolutionary War.

Washington's Headquarters

Free things to do at Valley Forge include visiting Washington's Headquarters. George Washington and his staff resided here during the winter encampment of 1777. A park employee provides guided tours of the headquarters on the half hour.

Muhlenberg Brigade

Free attractions include the Muhlenberg Brigade. Featured as one of the tour stops, General Peter Muhlenberg led the encampment. Here, the daily activities of the soldiers are portrayed.

Varnum's Quarters

Free things to do at Valley Forge include visiting Varnum's Quarters. General James Varnum took up residence with the David Stephens family for a period of the Valley Forge encampment. The tour stop explains how taking up quarters impacted families.

Knox Estate Library

Free attractions at Valley Forge include visiting the Philander Chase Knox Estate. The library features a collection of approximately 5,000 books on topics of political, social, and industrial history. The library is not open on weekends or holidays and requires an appointment in advance of the visit. It's located on Yellow Spring Road.

Washington Memorial Chapel

Free things to do at Valley Forge include visiting the Washington Memorial Chapel. The Chapel is an active Episcopal congregation located on the ground where George Washington wintered with his troops in 1777. The Chapel is open seven days a week.