Crawford Gives 2026
Support Friends of Drake Well with Crawford Gives, August 19-21, 2026!
The Crawford Heritage Community Foundation's annual Crawford Gives takes place from Wednesday, August 19 through midnight on Friday, August 21, 2026. This special event allows generous people and businesses the opportunity to support nonprofit organizations that are helping meet the needs of our community, including Friends of Drake Well, Inc. Friends of Drake Well is the community-based nonprofit that actively supports the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in the administration and operation of Drake Well Museum and Park, as well as its associated sites of Historic Pithole City and McClintock Well #1.
Friends of Drake Well has participated in Crawford Gives for several years; the past three years it raised funding to support Drake Well Museum's Free Transportation Program for school tours. The group raised $1,925 in 2023; $1,777 in 2024; and $3,412 in 2025! All proceeds from Crawford Gives go specifically to those schools who wish to visit Drake Well Museum but need assistance in paying the costs of transportation. In the last three school years, Friends of Drake Well spent a combined total of over $20,000 in grant funding, including Crawford Gives funding, on transportation costs for 35 different school tour groups.
School tours are an important part of Drake Well Museum and Park as they provide a crucial way for the Museum to educate children on the rich history of the early petroleum industry of Pennsylvania. For many of the school children who visit Drake Well Museum, this history took place in their "backyards" here in northwestern Pennsylvania - history that literally changed our world and the way in which we live. The industry that started with the famous Drake Well of Titusville in 1859 is now a major global enterprise that affects each of us every day. Unfortunately with rising costs, schools are finding it more difficult to provide field trips to museums and historical sites such as Drake Well. After listening to some of the concerns of local schools, Drake Well Museum and Friends of Drake Well worked on obtaining grants to provide free admission for school tour groups as well as free transportation for those schools in need. This has greatly increased school tour attendance at Drake Well, which was struggling to bounce back following the COVID pandemic. The funding received from donors during Crawford Gives has made a difference, helping Friends of Drake Well provide the support needed to get schools to Drake Well. Be part of our success story - consider donating for our cause during this year's Crawford Gives!!
Stay tuned for more information, including how to give!
Check out our online profile on the Crawford Gives website at www.crawfordgives.org/nonprofits/drakewell.
Friends of Drake Well thanks you for your support of Drake Well Museum and Crawford Gives!