Date

June 26, 2025

Time

7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Location

Mennonite Life Community Room

Cost

Complimentary

Join Mennonite Life for an evening with Christopher Scott, author of Chain of Title: An Adventure to Uncover the 350-Year Legacy of the Old Grist Mill.

Chain of Title tells the story of Scott’s two-year investigative journey to discover the history behind the property where he lives.

It all began with an innocent trip to the local historical society to learn more about the old grist mill Christopher Scott had recently converted into his home.

Scott’s initial inquiry into his home’s history turned into a two-year adventure and a trail of clues leading to dozens of libraries, archives, and historical societies. The old grist mill’s 350 year history is a long chain connecting Scott back through the centuries to William Penn. Scott’s hunt for the story behind the Old Grist Mill goes beyond the who, what, and when of a building’s history and digs into the why, considering Lancaster County’s complex history.

Chain of Title is also a personal story, following Scott as he becomes an amateur historian. He navigates unreliable narrators, flawed oral tradition, and bias. His research challenges preconceptions, and in the end reveals a new and unexpected history.

Christopher Scott is a retired medical device executive with a newly discovered passion for history, as well as a dedicated tour guide at the 1719 Museum.

Read an article written by Christopher Scott on Lancaster Uncharted.

This event is complimentary and does not require registration.

Location

  • Mennonite Life Community Room
  • 2215 Millstream Road
    Lancaster, PA 17602 United States
  • + Google Map
  • Phone(717) 393-9745
  • Website https://mennonitelife.org/

Our Campuses

Mennonite Life Campus
1719 Museum Campus

Did You Know?

The sandstone used for the Herr House was quarried on-site.

Christian Herr was a prominent leader in the 18th century Mennonite Community. Years after his death Lancaster Mennonites were still referred to as the Christian Herr Party.

Indigenous Peoples taught the Herr family and other Mennonites how to hunt game, clear heavily forested land, and how to identify native plants.