Philadelphia Commercial Museum facts for kids
The Philadelphia Commercial Museum was a special place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It opened in 1895. This museum was also known by other names, like the International Bureau of Commerce. Later, it was called the Museum of the Philadelphia Civic Center.
The museum's main building was a beautiful, old-style building. It was built for a big event called the 1899 National Export Exposition. The museum's goal was to help businesses in the United States trade with other countries. It also collected items and facts about world trade. It was the first place in the U.S. to really push American businesses to sell their goods overseas.
Contents
History of the Museum
How the Museum Started
The idea for the museum began in 1893. A scientist named William P. Wilson was a professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He visited a huge event called the World's Columbian Exposition. This was like a giant world's fair.
Wilson thought it would be great to have a "permanent world's fair museum." He bought many of the cool things shown at the fair. He sent them to Philadelphia. The museum first opened in temporary spots.
Four years after Wilson started the museum, its main building opened. This was in 1899. William Pepper was the first leader of the museum's board. The museum gathered amazing exhibits from places like Latin America, Africa, Australia, Japan, and India. It had the biggest collection of raw materials in the world.
Building the Museum's Home
William Pepper had an idea to place the Commercial Museum near the University of Pennsylvania Museum. This was similar to how the South Kensington Museum worked. In 1896, the City Councils agreed. They gave the museum's leaders 16 acres of land. This land was for building the museum.
The buildings cost a lot of money, about $1,000,000. The U.S. Congress gave $300,000. They agreed that the buildings would become the museum's home after the Export Exposition. The state of Pennsylvania gave $75,000. The city of Philadelphia gave $200,000. People from Philadelphia and across the country also donated money.
Later Years and Closing
In 1966, the museum changed its name. It became the Museum of the Philadelphia Civic Center. The museum stayed open for many more years. However, it finally closed its doors on July 1, 1994.
This article incorporates text from a work in the public domain: Bonnier Corporation's "Popular Science" (1899)- This article incorporates text from a work in the public domain: A. Johnson, C. Bickford, W. Hudson, N. Dole's "Cyclopedic Review of Current History" (1899)
