Cultural and Historical Support Grant

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, through the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), administers the Cultural and Historical Support Grant program to assist eligible museums and official county historical societies located within the state. This grant program is specifically funded through allocations placed in PHMC’s operating budget by the state legislature and is intended exclusively to support general operations for qualifying cultural institutions. The primary objective of the program is to strengthen the Pennsylvania museum community, support organizations that may not receive operational funding from other state sources, and offer unrestricted financial support that can be used according to each recipient’s most pressing needs. The grant also seeks to achieve geographical balance in distributing the available funds across the state. To be eligible, museums must be located in Pennsylvania, operate as nonprofit institutions with a legal 501(c)(3) designation or as a local government entity, have been incorporated and publicly exhibiting for at least two years, and maintain an annual operating budget exceeding $100,000 excluding capital and in-kind contributions. These museums must employ at least one full-time professional staff member or an equivalent. Eligible museums include children’s museums, general museums, history museums, historic sites, military or maritime museums, natural history museums, science centers, planetariums, and others that meet the American Association of Museums’ definition. Multipurpose institutions may apply if their museum component operates autonomously with a discrete budget and administrative structure. Official County Historical Societies can also apply but must meet distinct criteria. These societies must be officially recognized as the historical society for a Pennsylvania county, incorporated for at least two years, operate as a membership organization with at least 100 paid members, and maintain a physical facility open to the public for at least 100 days per year or by appointment. They must also sponsor programs relevant to county history, including public and educational programming and maintain an active research or publication agenda. Like museums, they must also be tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) and registered with the Pennsylvania Commission on Charitable Organizations. Grant awards for museums are calculated based on their most recently completed fiscal year's operating budget, typically ranging from 1% to 2% of that amount. The maximum award for a museum is capped at $65,000. Official County Historical Societies may receive up to $8,000. No county may receive more than 37.5% of the total available funding, and exceeding this threshold may result in reduced individual award amounts. Eligible uses of the funds include salaries, insurance, travel, telecommunications, equipment, and other general operating expenses. Ineligible uses include capital improvements, acquisitions for collections, endowments, religious programs, lobbying, and entertainment expenses. Applications are submitted through the Commonwealth's Electronic Single Application for Assistance system. Prospective applicants must register for a Keystone Login account to access the system. No hard copies are required for submission. The application cycle typically opens in early July and closes by the end of August each year, though the exact dates may vary slightly. Grant award recommendations are prepared by PHMC staff and submitted to the Commission for approval. For technical support with the application system, applicants can contact the Enterprise eGrants Customer Service Center at 1-833-448-0647 or email egrantshelp@pa.gov. For program eligibility questions, Rusty Baker, Executive Director of PA Museums, serves as the primary contact and may be reached at (717) 909-4951 or via email at c-rubaker@pa.gov. Additional inquiries can be sent to RA-PHGrantSupport@pa.gov with the subject line "CHSG".