This study aims to investigate the effects of a History and Philosophy of Chemistry-I course based on active learning applications on the level of knowledge of pre-service chemistry teachers about the history of chemistry. The views of pre-service chemistry teachers about these activities were also investigated. The study was carried out with 38 pre-service chemistry teachers from a university in Turkey in the academic year 2012-2013. In the History and Philosophy of Chemistry-I course; instruction was carried out based on five steps that included pre-service teachers' oral presentations, poster presentations, the assessment of the pre-service teachers' posters presentations with a rubric, preparing a timeline, and an assessment of the pre-service teachers' timelines. The data of this study was collected with an open-ended questionnaire. The questionnaire was administered to all the pre-service teachers before and after the instruction. The results of the study indicated that the pre-service teachers' level of knowledge about the history of chemistry had increased after the instruction. Also, interviews revealed that the pre-service teachers had positive views about the active learning activities.