Pennsylvania Military Museum Welcomes Back People's Choice Festival

The annual homegrown festival returns to Boalsburg after a brief stint in Centre Hall.

Published on Feb. 25, 2026

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The Pennsylvania Military Museum in Boalsburg, Pennsylvania will once again host the People's Choice Festival of Pennsylvania this July after the event briefly moved to Centre Hall in 2022. The return of the festival to its original location comes after new museum director Chris Kuhns began receiving requests to bring the event back. While the festival had outgrown the museum's grounds in the past, a decline in attendance and vendors since the move has allowed the museum to more easily accommodate the event.

Why it matters

The People's Choice Festival is a beloved annual event that celebrates Pennsylvania's homegrown arts, crafts, and food. Its return to the Pennsylvania Military Museum grounds in Boalsburg is seen as a win for the local community, as the festival had struggled to maintain its attendance and vendor numbers after moving to Centre Hall. The museum also views the festival's return as an opportunity to increase its own outreach and visibility.

The details

Under the new arrangement, People's Choice volunteers will manage the festival's parking, relieving the burden on the museum's small staff. The museum's membership group, the Friends of the Pennsylvania Military Museum, will also use the freed-up time to help maintain the property's 75 acres, which are heavily impacted by the four-day festival. Additionally, the museum plans to set up an outreach and exhibition tent on the festival grounds to showcase military art and history.

  • The People's Choice Festival will take place from July 9-12, 2026.
  • Chris Kuhns became the director of the Pennsylvania Military Museum in June 2025.

The players

Chris Kuhns

The director of the Pennsylvania Military Museum who began receiving requests to bring the People's Choice Festival back to the museum's grounds shortly after starting his tenure.

John Madison

The co-director of the People's Choice Festival, who said attendance and engagement have declined since the event moved away from Boalsburg.

People's Choice Festival of Pennsylvania

An annual festival that celebrates Pennsylvania's homegrown arts, crafts, and food, and is returning to the Pennsylvania Military Museum grounds in Boalsburg after a brief stint in Centre Hall.

Pennsylvania Military Museum

A museum in Boalsburg, Pennsylvania that is welcoming back the People's Choice Festival to its grounds after the event briefly moved to Centre Hall.

Friends of the Pennsylvania Military Museum

The museum's membership group that will use the freed-up time from the festival's parking management to help maintain the property's roughly 75 acres.

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What they’re saying

“We're all pretty happy to see it come back to Boalsburg.”

— Chris Kuhns, Director, Pennsylvania Military Museum (centredaily.com)

“It was a nice place. It worked fine for us, but we just couldn't draw a big enough crowd out there. We couldn't get the folks to drive that extra distance, and we needed a little more support than we were getting out there.”

— John Madison, Co-Director, People's Choice Festival (centredaily.com)

What’s next

The Pennsylvania Military Museum's $3.4 million renovations project is expected to be completed before the People's Choice Festival returns to Boalsburg in July 2026.

The takeaway

The return of the People's Choice Festival to the Pennsylvania Military Museum's grounds in Boalsburg represents a win-win for both the festival and the museum. The festival gets to come back to its original home, while the museum sees an opportunity to increase its own outreach and visibility within the local community.