Facilities

Ligonier Valley Historical Society’s main campus located along Route 30 in Laughlintown, Pennsylvania consists of its flagship project the authentic historic Compass Inn along with various reconstructed outbuildings. In addition, the other buildings located on the campus are the:

In 1916, Charles Armor, grandson of Robert and Rachel Armor sold several lots on the northwestern end of the original Compass Inn property to William S. Buell. On August 3, 1918, Charles A. Hall and his wife Alberta purchased the property from Mr. Buell. Then, during 1945, Mr. Hall deeded the property to his son William S. Hall and his wife Margaret Ethel Hall. They built a three story, brick dwelling on the northern end of the property along Route 30. On April 14, 1979, Ligonier Valley Historical Society acquired the property bringing it back to the historic property. After extensive renovations, the house, now known as the Hall House, was used as office and research space, an art gallery, and mini-museum to showcase the history of the Ligonier Valley. Once the organization and its collection grew, the need to repurpose the art gallery, mini-museum, and research area into archive and document storage space arose and remains so today.

At the Society’s Annual Meeting June 11, 2017, Ligonier Valley Historical Society honored Louise “Corky” Barnhart by dedicating the recently renovated former office, work and storage room at Compass Inn Museum as the Barnhart Education Room. When constructing the Museum Store wing at the Museum in late 1971, this space was part of that addition. The restoration of this space made possible through the generosity of Corky Barnhart, her friends, friends of Alice Stufft, and the Whetzel Family Charitable Trust.

Partnership and teamwork are two words that describe Louise “Corky” Barnhart. She was an outstanding woman; she worked tirelessly, nurturing a project steeped in history and grounded in community. The result of her loving care and dedication is our Compass Inn Museum.

Corky began her association with Ligonier Valley Historical Society first as a volunteer, then as a board member serving as the Chairman of the Membership Committee and eventually as Board President. Corky and Mrs. Constance Mellon Burrell also known as “Mrs. B.”, were intimately involved in the day-to-day progress of the restoration and furnishing of the historic site. 

Corky’s fellow board members, historical society members, and volunteers use adjectives such as “diligent and relentless” to describe Corky’s efforts and the energy she poured into realizing the dream of a museum at Compass Inn. Through her tenacity, Corky made possible many significant features of the Inn. It has been said that Corky got the details right- she even slept one night on a cornstalk mattress to test its comfort. Corky ate, slept, and drank Compass Inn. She put all her energies there. It was her passion.

On May 27, 1972, Compass Inn opened to the public. Once the house was restored and furnished, Mrs. B. is reported to have asked, “Well, Corky, what shall we build next?” Corky responded, “Well, I have always liked barns.” “So have I,” replied Mrs. B. “Let’s build a barn then.” It did not stop there; they then built a cookhouse and a blacksmith shop.

This triangular parcel of land south of Weimer Avenue and bound by California Avenue and the private lane, Armor Street, was once a part of the large, five-acre tract of land associated with the historic Compass Inn. In 1798, less than 1 year after John Updergraft drafted the plot map of East Liberty (now Laughlintown) for Robert Laughlin, Philip Freeman purchased several lots as well as the five-acre triangular shaped parcel to the south, just across from Naugle Run. Along with the log portion of the drovers Inn, Freeman built a horse barn within the triangular 5-acre lot. Initially, mostly likely used as pasture for the drover’s livestock, by the mid-19th century the field contained an orchard and garden. Promised by a stipulation in the purchase agreement each buyer of Laughlintown lots had enough timber to build a 20 x 24 foot two-story dwelling. One can assume the timber used to build the inn came from the trees felled within the lots Freeman purchased (Naugle, 1976).

Although there is no evidence there was a Carpenter Shop located on the Compass Inn property during its time as a stagecoach stop, there had to be one in Laughlintown. In 2006, Ligonier Valley Historical Society accepted a gift of a furnished, authentically constructed early 19th century carpenter’s shop from three donors who wish to remain anonymous. After completing the installation of the shop and historical tools of the trade at its new home at Compass Inn Museum a dedication ceremony was held on May 13, 2006. The generosity of these three individuals will live long past their lifetimes in the memory of their friends, the gratitude of Ligonier Valley Historical Society, and the educational experiences of schoolchildren and museum visitors for generations to come. The Shop is currently located on the southwestern corner of the Campus along Weimer Avenue. Visitors may visit the shop while touring the museum.