About the Society
Founded 2022 by Jerry King Musser
Incorporated May 2026 / 501(c)(3) LLC
Columbia, Pennsylvania USA
In the Beginning
In the summer of 2022, a sizable cache of glass plate negatives were purchased by an associate and friend. Most of these negative images displayed old scenes and places of Columbia, Pennsylvania, circa 1890. Cleon Berntheizel, Andreas Heisey, and Jerry King Musser set out to retain, identify, and archive these images so they wouldn't be lost and forgotten. Jerry King Musser was tasked with scanning and cataloging approximately 860 images from this collection. Many others were somewhat newer negatives, celluloid or acetate, from the 1930s to the 1960s.
When this collection was passed into our care, we were told by the previous owner that "there may be a couple of shots by Lloyd Mifflin." During the next couple of months, we discovered those "couple of images." It was at this time that Musser became even more intrigued by these images from the late 19th century and early 20th. Columbia's own, Lloyd Mifflin—painter, sculptor, and poet—also demonstrated his interest in photography. Musser's interest in all things Lloyd Mifflin intensified. That interest was soon shared by Berntheizel and Heisey. Digging deeper into Lloyd's life, body of work, and his place in Columbia's history grew into a passion to know more, and to see more. Next, came visits to the archives of the Pennsylvania State Museum, that of Franklin & Marshall College archives, and the collection of similar glass plate negatives held by the Columbia Historic Preservation Society. The more images viewed (confirmed to be attributed to Lloyd Mifflin), the more Musser discovered a style and content pattern in other images found in the initial glass plate purchase.
More than a year later, it became abundantly clear that the original glass plate negatives first attained by Berntheizel, Heisey, and Musser contained more than those few we were alerted to. It's now estimated that of the original 860 images scanned and catalogued, 150-200 original Lloyd Mifflin glass plate negatives exist in the collection. After that, we had to know more. Much more. Those first images started an itch we're still scratching. Now, those original Mifflin negatives are part of the Lloyd Mifflin Society's archive, along with various copies of his books of sonnets, personal documents, letters, and artifacts. We've just gotten started.
Phase Two
By Spring 2026, it became clear that if we wanted to do those things necessary to achieve our goal of spreading the work about Lloyd Mifflin and his accomplishments—reaching a wider audience and gathering more artifacts—we had to reach a legal and transparent non-profit status sanctioned by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In April of 2026, we asked our attorney to establish the Lloyd Mifflin Society LLC, a non-profit 501(c)(3) Limited Liability Corporation.
During the previous few years, we have had citizens, collectors, and organizations offer to donate documents, letters, books, artifacts, and even paintings in hopes that, one day, our dedicated efforts would lead to a permanent Lloyd Mifflin Museum. Indeed, that is entirely our main goal, but before we attain such a goal, we simply could not, in good conscience, accept such items until we reached the protections afforded our organization by incorporating rather than acting as single individuals with a passion for Lloyd Mifflin. Now, donors can feel more secure in knowing that their items of interest will be addressed and cared for properly until such time as museum is established. And, as stated in our By Laws, if a museum is never achieved, all items in our possession will be submitted to a prestigious institution capable of displaying and protecting the artifacts and creative evidence left by Lloyd Mifflin and his family members.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jerry King Musser
Chairman / Founder
Cleon Garth Berntheizel
Vice-Chairman
Kelly Alan Murphy
Secretary
Thomas Martin Heisler III
Treasurer
Martin Frank Moore
Development Director
SUPPORTING MEMBERS
Christopher Vera
Columbia Historic Preservation Society
Charlene Bair
Researcher
Janette Toth-Musser
Researcher / Coordinator
SOLICITOR of RECORD
Micheal S. Grab, Esq.
Nikolaus & Hohenadel, LLP
LEGACY MEMBERS
Peter Mifflin Young
Moultonborough, NH
Duncan Cairnes Ely
Chestnut Hill, PA
David Mifflin Remick
South Attleboro, MA
Richard Young
Moultonborough, NH
Dominic Vari
Wilmington, DE