As of July 6th, APS offices are open to staff and invited visitors. The Society will remain closed to the public for at least the rest of the summer. Library & Museum staff now have access to our collections and will respond to reference and photoduplication requests as soon as possible. However, please note that response times may be delayed due to increased demand. The Society will continue a robust slate of virtual programs throughout the summer and fall. Read more about virtual programming and resources that can be accessed remotely. For further information on the APS reopening and its COVID response, please click here.

Virtual Offerings at the American Philosophical Society

Founded in 1743, the American Philosophical Society has pursued a mission of "promoting useful knowledge" through research, publications, and public programs. As people around the world have begun to live and work remotely while we fight the COVID-19 pandemic, the APS has put online the great programming usually offered in-person throughout the year. We think Benjamin Franklin, our founder, would heartily support our efforts to keep you edified and entertained!

Use the navigation bar to the left to take you to content specially designed for different audiences. In each segment you will find upcoming programs as well as links to archived programs. Several of the past programs have resources for further information which we hope you will explore.

Please bookmark this page and visit often. If you have any suggestions for types of programs you would like to see, please email Head of Scholarly Programming Adrianna Link (alink@amphilsoc.org), Head of Education Programs Michael Madeja (mmadeja@amphilsoc), or Associate Director for Library and Museum Programming Kyle Roberts (kroberts@amphilsoc.org). "See" you online!

Public Programs

Virtual Conferences and Symposia

Upcoming Programs:

September 21-25: "Relationships, Reciprocity, Responsibilities: Indigenous Studies in Archives and Beyond"

This conference is part of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Native American Scholars Initiative (NASI) and will reflect new and emerging scholarship in Native American and Indigenous Studies and allied fields. Sessions will be held daily on September 21-25 at 1:00pm and 3:00pm EDT.

Registration is required to attend this event. To register and view the full program, please visit the event website.

Past Programs:

June 8-12: "Evidence: the Use and Misuse of Data"

Virtual Discussions

Recordings of past programs may be viewed on the Society's YouTube channel.

Upcoming Programs:

September 16: Audra Wolfe, "Science, Freedom, and the Cold War: A Political History of Apolitical Science"

September 10: Lisa Tetrault "When Women Won the Right to Vote: A History Unfinished"

Lunch Lectures

Upcoming Programs:

Check back soon for more programs!

Public Programs

Upcoming Programs:

October 8: Deciphering the Past: Transcription Hour

Past Programs:

June 4: Deciphering the Past: An Introduction to Transcription (with the Science History Institute)

Science on Tap

For more information on topics, speakers, and how to register, see the Science on Tap website. The APS will be hosting Science on Tap on Monday, December 14!

Upcoming Programs:

September 14: Penn Museum hosting

September 28: Untapped at Home, Netflix Watch Party with the Wagner Free Institute

October 12: Mutter Museum hosting

October 26: Untapped at Home, Netflix Watch Party with the Mutter Museum

November 9: Academy of Natural Sciences hosting

December 14: APS hosting with Dr. Janine Boldt

Past Programs:

April 27: Untapped at Home, Netflix Watch Party: Janine Boldt and Emily Margolis, National Treasure

More information about Science on Tap, here

Scholarly Programs

Virtual Brown Bags

Virtual Brown Bags are open to APS Staff, Fellows, and area scholars. All Virtual Brown Bags meet at 11:00am EDT on Zoom. To receive the link to attend, contact Adrianna Link, Head of Scholarly Programs, at alink@amphilsoc.org.

Fall 2020

September 8 – Kinsey Brock (University of California, Merced), "Color polymorphism among wall lizards in the Greek Aegean Islands"

September 15 – Long-Term Fellows Flash Talks: Gustave Lester (Harvard University),“Mineral Lands, Mineral Empire: Mapping the Raw Materials of U.S. Industrial Capitalism, 1780-1880"; Andrew Seaton (New York University), "The National Health Service and the Endurances of British Social Democracy"

September 29 – Long-Term Fellows Flash Talks: Candy Martinez (University of California, Santa Cruz) "Working Through Emotional Pains, Structural Inequalities and Healing in Oaxacan communities"; Brooke Bauer (University of South Carolina Lancaster), "Catawba Women and Nation-building, 1540-1840"

October 6 – Christy Pottroff (Merrimack College), "Anne Bradstreet's Door."

October 13 – Claire Webb (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), "Visual Technologies of Perception in the Space Age"

Indigenous Studies Seminar

Inspired by the work of the Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR), the APS Library & Museum's Indigenous Studies Seminar Series serves scholars and researchers in the Greater Philadelphia area working on projects in or aligned with Native American and Indigenous Studies.

The seminar meets monthly from 3:00-5:00pm EDT via Zoom. Most meetings center around a pre-circulated paper, which will be made available for download two weeks prior to the event. To attend, please contact Adrianna Link, Head of Scholarly Programs, at alink@amphilsoc.org

Fall 2020:

Check back soon for an updated schedule!

For Kids & Teens

At Home Activities

Check out the APS at Home page for crafts and activities.

-OR-

Explore our Pinterest page with activities we love and other activities from our Education department.

For Educators

Career Chats

This series brings you real conversations with APS staff on their careers and education and how they came to work at the Society.

A Malignant Tale - Yellow Fever, 1793 Epidemic

This lesson and activity use letters and sensory experience to talk about Philadelphia's 1793 yellow fever epidemic.

Letter Writing - Templates for Social Life

Lessons and activities that explore 18th century (and modern) letter writing practices.

Editing the Declaration

Learn about copies of the Declaration of Independence, from how they were edited and when to what that all means.

Other Educator Resources

Though you can't visit the Museum or Archives, our collections are still searchable!