Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

About

The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University is the oldest natural history museum in the Western Hemisphere, founded in 1812 — four years before the city of Philadelphia reached its current boundaries. Over two centuries of collecting, the Academy has assembled scientific research collections of extraordinary depth: 17 million specimens spanning paleontology, entomology, botany, ornithology, ichthyology, and malacology, used by researchers from around the world. For public visitors, the museum's most celebrated features include its dinosaur hall — one of the first in any public museum — with mounted skeletons including a T. rex and Giganotosaurus, and a series of wildlife dioramas depicting North American mammals and birds in meticulously constructed habitat reconstructions. The live butterfly house immerses visitors in a tropical environment with hundreds of free-flying butterfly species, and the live animal center houses reptiles, amphibians, and other organisms tied to the museum's research programs. Outside the Path exhibits bring visitors into direct contact with live arthropods and other invertebrates in a hands-on discovery environment. The Academy also hosts active field research, and its scientists publish findings across all branches of natural history — making it a genuine research institution operating in parallel with its public programs. As an ASTC Passport Program participant, members of qualifying out-of-region science centers receive reciprocal free admission. Located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway directly adjacent to the Franklin Institute, the two museums together constitute one of the strongest learning corridors in Philadelphia.

Affiliated Places

The Franklin Institute

Philadelphia, PA

🔬 Science Center

ASTC Travel Passport Program member. Members of qualifying ASTC institutions from outside the Philadelphia region receive free admission.

Subject Areas

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