Our next program in the Greater Philadelphia Roundtable series, “City of Neighborhoods, City of Homes,” will take place at the Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent – a great chance to see the new exhibits there prior to the program. Make sure to register in advance for the program at https://philadelphiaencyclopedia.org/events. Here’s a preview of the museum’s new offerings:
The Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent recently reopened, in part, as a preview to the museum’s full reopening this summer. A three-year renovation has upgraded the pre-Civil War structure (the original home of the Franklin Institute) adding new galleries and two currently opened exhibitions with more to come this summer.
Start in the orientation gallery where City Stories: An Introduction to Philadelphia welcomes visitors in a multi-layered exhibition featuring almost 30 artifacts that help illustrate Philadelphia’s transition from the “greene country towne” founded by William Penn to the place where the Declaration of Independence was signed to the Workshop of the World and the World Champion Phillies. City Stories features an original media presentation with contemporary Philadelphians sharing their feelings on the city of neighborhoods.
Philadelphia Voices: The Community History Gallery serves as a preview space for the five additional galleries to be unveiled this summer. Celebrated artifacts displayed here, including Joe Frazier’s boxing gloves, George Washington’s pocket watch, and a Passmore Williamson family portrait, provide a further glimpse into the Museum’s extensive collection.
The Philadelphia History Museum: 15 South 7th Street
http://www.philadelphiahistory.org
Free and open to the public Wednesday to Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.