The Boal Mansion is the site of the Columbus Chapel containing the most important collection of Christopher Columbus artifacts in North America. The chapel was brought to the Boal Estate in 1909 from the Columbus family castle in Spain.
It contains:
. Columbus Admiral's Desk
. Columbus family archives (1453-1908)
. Two pieces of the True Cross
. An exceptional collection of European art (1400's to 1700's)
Visitors also discover in the Boal Mansion the beautiful intact decorative arts and furnishings of nine generations of this representative American family.
Since 1789, the Boal family have helped found many local landmarks still here today, including:
. The historic village of Boalsburg (1808)
. The birthplace of Memorial Day in 1864 - with charming shops, taverns and galleries
. The Pennsylvania State University (1855)
. The 28th Division Shrine
. The Pennsylvania Military Museum (1919)
. The Boal Barn Playhouse (1959)
The Boal Mansion collection also contains many other reflections of the family's incredible international ancestry as well as a large collection of weapons and military artifacts from the Revolutionary War to World War I.

The site was established in 1789 by the pioneer and Revolutionary War captain David Boal and has been developed further by nine generations of the same family. The sixth generation opened the site as a non-profit museum in 1952.