Mercer Museum
Doylestown, PA · 1 hour 29 minutes from Reading · $20 to $50 a person
Plan the day
The Mercer Museum is a six-story reinforced concrete castle in Doylestown, PA, completed by Henry Mercer in 1916 to hold his collection of pre-industrial American tools.
Mercer designed the concrete castle to hold the collection, so the building is half the show: six stories of galleries with what the museum counts as more than 17,000 pre-industrial tools across some 60 early American crafts and trades, down to a 2,000-year-old whale oil lamp. The modern wing holds changing exhibits, this season The Doan Gang: Outlaws of the Revolution, and Fonthill Castle, Mercer's home, makes a second stop in town.
Before you go
Book a timed-entry ticket online ahead; same-day tickets are not guaranteed. Entry windows are 10 am to 1 pm, 1 to 3 pm and 3 to 5 pm. Enter from the Helen Gemmill Plaza beside the museum lot on Scout Way. The historic castle has an elevator but narrow passages and no climate control.
Coming up
The Doan Gang: Outlaws of the Revolution is the featured exhibit this fall, with $20 guided evening tours on select dates; the free Gingerbread in the Log House program is November 27 and the free Holiday Market is December 12.
Checked October 8, 2026 on the official site. Hours, prices and seasons change, so confirm there before a long drive. Mercer Museum also has a listing on BerksConnect.
