The West Shore Historical Society (WSHS) is the official historical society for the townships of Fairview, Lower Allen, Silver Spring, and Hampden and the Boroughs of, Lemoyne and Wormleysburg, all located on the West Shore of the Greater Harrisburg Metropolitan Area, Pennsylvania. WSHS was founded as the Gateway Historical Society in 2009, representing the Boroughs of Lemoyne and Wormleysburg. With the addition of Lower Allen, Hampden, Silver Spring, and Fairview Townships our name was changed to reflect our growth.
The West Shore Historical Society is a non-profit, all volunteer educational and historical
organization dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the heritage, landmarks, and
artifacts that are relevant to the municipalities we serve.
Our purpose and objectives are to:
- educate the public regarding the history of our West Shore communities and municipalities;
- help interpret and understand the historic impact of our local area and Cumberland County;
- create and foster greater public awareness of the history of our local area;
- conduct and encourage educational and outreach efforts to carry out our mission;
- collect and preserve significant relics, artifacts, photographs, and documents of our area’s
history and heritage; - research and verify historical facts and make them available to the public through education,
booklets, newsletters, an annual journal and to media outlets.
The WSHS is funded by membership dues and contributions from businesses and individuals. We publish
quarterly newsletters for our members that feature articles and pictures related to the history of
our six municipalities.
We are proud to announce our new location! Our office and archives are now located at 939 Kranzel
Drive, Camp Hill, PA in the Lower Allen Shopping Center, directly across the street from the Lower
Allen Township Municipal building.