Watch ONLINE via ZOOM from the safety and comfort of your home. A link with instructions will be provided three hours prior to this virtual lecture.
A Collection of Collections: An Update on the Atwater Kent Philadelphia History Collection
presented by Rosalind Remer, Ph.D.
In the summer of 2018, after operating for some 80 years, the Philadelphia History Museum (also known as the Atwater Kent Museum) closed its doors. The collection—numbering around 130,000 objects—belongs to the City of Philadelphia, which had, over the years, reduced its financial commitment to the museum’s operations, a key factor in the museum’s closure. While members of the public were most concerned about the museum’s closing, the pressing question was what to do with the extraordinary collection chronicling Philadelphia’s history from its beginnings into the 21st century. Drexel University stepped in, at the City’s request, to evaluate the collection’s historical value, piece by piece, and to design a way for the collection to remain accessible to the public, absent a brick-and-mortar museum.
Dr. Remer will speak about the process of evaluating the Atwater Kent Collection, the exhibitions planned, and the ambitious loan program that will make the collection more accessible than ever. She will provide insight into this “collection of collections” and the stories it supports.
Dr. Rosalind Remer, Senior Vice Provost for Collections & Exhibitions at Drexel, was an associate professor of history at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where she taught early American history for fourteen years. She was drawn to public history, museum planning and administration while on leave to direct the planning efforts for the National Constitution Center. She went on to serve as Executive Director of the Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary, and then co-found Remer & Talbott, a consulting firm serving museums, libraries, universities, historic sites and other nonprofits. She joined Drexel University in 2013, where she served for two years as a senior advisor to the president and facilitator of Drexel’s key presidential initiatives.
$15 | General Admission
$10 | Alliance Member
Complimentary access available to current students and to Art-Reach ACCESS Card holders.
*Students, please email photo of valid student ID to Vinni Cheng tours@preservationalliance.com to register.
*Art Reach ACCESS Card holders, please email member name and member number to Vinni Cheng tours@preservationalliance.com to register.