Delco Gives Day – 2025

Rose Valley Museum

This year, help us to replace the beloved Great Minquas Path Monument that was stolen!

Donate starting at 7pm on Thursday, May 8th and ending on Friday, May 9th at 7pm.

In 1926, led by Charles Stephens, Rose Valley resident and Native American expert, and the Pennsylvania Historical Commission, the community installed a bronze statue of a beaver by sculptor Albert Laessle, and a bronze plaque, designed by Charles Stephens, to commemorate the native Americans who trekked from the Susquehanna through Rose Valley and the Great Minquas Path they traveled on. The monument stood until in 2021 when the beaver and plaque were pried off their stone base, probably to be melted down. They have never been found.

Rose Valley Museum & Historical Society, along with others in the community, are raising funds to commission a reproduction of the statue and plaque, based on historical plans.  We hope to install them at the original location using the original stone pillar and with appropriate security precautions to prevent future theft.  Our goal is to dedicate the new monument in September 2026, exactly 100 years after the original dedication. Your donation will help us achieve that goal!

A festive afternoon and evening will close out the event on Friday at Rose Tree Park from 4:30 to 7:30pm where there will be food trucks, music, the Philly Phanatic and more! Join the fun!

Donations at the site will only be taken from 7:00 pm on May 8^th to 7:00 pm on May 9^th.  You can donate by check, or on our web site before that; just be sure to indicate that your donation is targeted for the Delco Gives drive.  The “Make a Contribution” button is at the bottom of our homepage or at the left top of the Membership page.  Check out our page at the DelcoGives.Org site for the full story of the Great Minquas Path marker.