May First Saturday: Go Birds!
MAY FIRST SATURDAY OPEN HOUSE
Go Birds!
Birdwatching requires a combination of skills: a watchful eye, a patient demeanor, and a working knowledge on what local birds look like, sound like, and where you might best find them. At this First Saturday Open House, be an ornithologist by practicing your bird watching skills in the Wagner’s Teaching Garden. Visitors can imitate bird calls and learn tips on how to accurately identify our flying friends. This is a perfect opportunity for folks to freshen up on their ornithology knowledge in preparation for Global Big Day, an annual celebration of birding to be held on Saturday May 9th.
How Buildings Help Us Remember (Spring Course)
Bricks, Mortar and the Mystic Chords of Memory: How Buildings Help Us Remember
with Professor Bruce Laverty
The approach of the 250th anniversary of American independence is a fitting time to reflect on the ways our Philadelphia ancestors chose to celebrate achievement and commemorate sacrifice. Bruce Laverty will examine the integral role Philadelphia’s builders, engineers and architects played in these milestone events. In 1774, they hosted the First Continental Congress at Carpenters Hall. In 1788, they built the Federal Edifice, a circular, portable, 10-columned, domed, classical temple-a physical symbol of the newly created United States. He will discuss the architectural and engineering triumph of the 1876 Centennial, an enterprise so successful, it planted the seeds of failure for both the 1926 Sesquicentennial and the 1976 Bicentennial – or so it seems. He will explore the good that emerged from these apparent failures and the challenge we face in 2026.
6 Tuesdays from May 5 - June 9, 2026; 6 - 7:30pm
Location: at the Parkway Central Library, Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street (between 19th and 20th streets), Philadelphia. This course meets on the 4th Floor in room 405/406/407.
This course requires pre-registration. Separate registration is required for each student. Sign up here or call 215-763-6529 x14 for assistance.
SPRING COURSE: Fungi as Food, Medicine and More
SPRING 2026 COURSE:
BOTANY SERIES
Fungi as Food, Medicine and More
with Professor Alden Dirks
What makes one mushroom edible and another poisonous, and why are they like this? How have humans utilized fungi for medicine, both naturally throughout history and pharmaceutically in modern times? And what’s up with psychedelic mushrooms? These questions and more will be answered in this six-week lecture series focused on all the ways in which humans interact with fungi as food and medicine.
This course requires pre-registration. Separate registration is required for each student.
6 Tuesdays from April 7 - May 12, 2026, 6:00 - 7:30 PM
Location: Pennsylvania Horticultural Society
April First Saturday: All About Bugs!
APRIL FIRST SATURDAY OPEN HOUSE
All About Bugs!
The Wagner's Entomology Collection boasts a lot of bugs: iridescent beetles, pinned butterflies, millipedes in ethanol, and more—with a significant selection collected right here in Philadelphia. At this First Saturday Open House visitors will learn about insect behavior and eating habits, learn tricks for capturing bugs in the wild, and discover different techniques for insect preservation. With the help of an entomologist, folks will also get the chance to pin their own insect specimen to take home with them.
March First Saturday: The Natural History Road Show!
MARCH'S FIRST SATURDAY OPEN HOUSE: The Natural History Road Show!
Are you a 21st century naturalist? Do you have natural materials collected on a personal expedition but can't figure out the scientific classification for your findings? Come have your specimens identified by a panel of experts at the Wagner’s Natural History Road Show! Visitors can meet and chat with scientists who specialize in insects, fossils, bones, shells, rocks, and minerals. If you don’t have a specimen to bring, see if you can stump the panelists with one of ours.
Our panelists include professor of biology Dr. Jason Downs, entomologist Greg Cowper, and others to be announced soon!
Additional activities throughout the day include exploring our natural history collection, completing a scavenger hunt, drawing in the museum, and digging up and identifying different types of shark teeth! Visitors may even take their found shark tooth home with them.
WINTER COURSE: Revolutionary Science, Revolutionary Scientist: Benjamin Franklin's Scientific Innovations
Revolutionary Science, Revolutionary Scientist: Benjamin Franklin's Scientific Innovationswith Professor Thomas Twardowski
Benjamin Franklin, a central figure in both the political and scientific spheres, will serve as a guiding figure throughout the course. Each week will delve into his contributions, using his work as a lens to understand the evolution of key scientific concepts and their lasting impact on modern science. By examining Franklin's innovations, students will gain a deeper appreciation for how scientific discoveries continue to shape our world.
This course requires pre-registration. Separate registration is required for each student.
6 Wednesdays from March 4 - April 8, 2026; 6 - 7:30pm
Location: Parkway Central Library
WINTER COURSE: Paleontology 1776
Paleontology 1776
with Professor Jason Downs
The nation states that arose from the political revolutions of the late 18th century play a role in shaping human society as we understand it today. Similarly, the geological and paleontological revolutions of those same few decades shape scientific practice today. With this course, audiences will be transported back to a time when fossils, long dismissed as divine tricks or inorganic curiosities, first developed an international reputation as important tools in understanding the history of life. Professor Jason Downs will present historical stories but also use his own experiences as a paleontologist to reflect on how this time of revolution continues to reverberate in current scientific research.
This course requires pre-registration. Separate registration is required for each student.
6 Saturdays from February 28 - April 4 8, 2026; 10 - 11:30 am
Location: Parkway Central Library (room 202)
WEEKNIGHTS AT THE WAGNER: Growing Old in the Jungle: The Challenges of Aging for Wild Chimpanzees with Dr. Ben Finkel
It was once thought that wild animals rarely lived long enough to experience age-related declines. However, substantial evidence has since emerged that senescence does occur in natural populations, and these deteriorations in vitality are nearly universal across the animal kingdom—shaping survival and reproduction in many species. During this talk, Dr. Finkel will use chimpanzees as a window into aging in the wild.
Like humans, our closest living relatives are exceptionally long-lived and, at first glance, appear to age gracefully: maintaining body condition and social integration well into old age. Drawing on data from wild male chimpanzees at Ngogo in Kibale National Park, Uganda, Dr. Finkel explores growing old in the wild, challenges of foraging, travel, and mating, and whether chimpanzee's seemingly graceful aging reflects the adoption of new strategies to compensate for these age-related changes.
By identifying the mechanisms that link senescence to behavior in a long-lived wild species, this research offers a lens into how aging has evolved in natural environments and offers a comparative perspective on the evolutionary foundations of longevity, including in humans.
An evening lecture series, Weeknights at the Wagner,invites experts into our Victorian lecture hall to speak on a range of science and history of science related subjects. Each talk includes a Q&A with the speaker.
February First Saturday: Rock, Paper, Stickers—The Science of Surface
From cave paintings, to love letters, to bank statements, or even the plans for the moon landing, writing down our ideas—as words and images—gives them power and helps us communicate across centuries. For writing to last, stylus must meet surface and create an indelible mark. At this Open House, Thomas Jefferson University Chemistry Professor Dr. Thomas Twardowski will present a set of demonstrations that explore inks and surfaces, binding and sticking, marking and fading, to illuminate the traditions of written communications.
"First Look" Lantern Slide Show
Be among the first to view newly acquired lantern slides! The Wagner received 4 donations of lantern slides this fall, including slides of Philadelphia roads in the nineteen-teens, Belgium in 1917, and botanical and architectural educational slides. This event will be the first time these slides are projected! No registration required.
Explore Our Entomology Collection
Get an insider's look at the Wagner's Entomology Collection with Entomologist and Wagner Educator Tín Rodriguez. No registration required.
Guided Sketching in the Museum
Unleash your creativity by sketching from our 100,000+ natural history specimens in the museum. Guests of all ages and artistic abilities are welcome! No registration required.
Weeknights at the Wagner: In Conversation with Judith Schaechter: Art, Science, and the “Super/Natural”
Acclaimed stained glass artist Judith Schaechter will discuss her immersive installation "Super/Natural"—a luminous, three-tiered cosmos rendered in glass. The work draws on her residency at the Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics, incorporating insights from biophilic design and the rich history of women’s contributions to botanical art. "Super/Natural" reimagines nature as a space of awe and contemplation, inviting viewers into a renewed sense of wonder and connection with the living world.
Admission is free to everyone and donations are accepted to support our mission.
Rebel with a Rulebook: What to Do with the 300-Year-Old Rules for Biological Names
What happens when the traditional rules that govern taxonomy, the practice of naming species and higher categories of life, predate evolutionary thinking? Do you break the rules to accommodate new discoveries? Join Jason Downs, a consummate rule follower, as he argues that rules should be followed until they no longer work—then they should be rewritten.
Science on Tap is a monthly gathering at National Mechanics Bar in Old City that features public discussion on engaging science topics.
December First Saturday Open House: Mineral Mania!
During this special open house explore how people historically learned about minerals and other natural elements. Visitors can view educational lantern slides from our archives, look at different minerals under a microscope, and explore optical mineralogy. Visitors may also experiment with minerals from the Wagner's teaching collection, testing things like hardness, luster, color, and cleavage to identify each mineral. We'll also have a mineral station and children's activity table, featuring the metamorphic minerals of the Wissahickon.
There will be talks and demonstrations in our lecture hall throughout the day. Make sure to join us at 1 pm for Mineral Oddities by Karenne Snow and at 2:30 pm for a glowing demonstration of Fluorescent Minerals by Bruce Mitchell—both are longtime members of the Philadelphia Mineralogical Society. The Wagner will also have a collection of minerals for sale, priced between $1 - $20. This is a great opportunity for those looking to start or grow their own scientific collection!
A Sip of Science
A Sip of Science is our signature soirée, bringing together science and history enthusiasts, community leaders, and Wagner supporters for an evening of celebration amid our sublime natural history collection.
November First Saturday Open House: Spooky Creature Feature—Bats!
Did you know Pennsylvania is home to nine different species of bats? Learn why bats are important animals in our ecosystem, how humans can help protect them, and how they’re not as scary as they may seem during our November Open House! A special presentation from The Pennsylvania Bat Rescue and Rehabilitation Center will be given at 1pm where brave participants will get to meet and greet some of the center's live ambassador bats!
Visitors can also view skeletons, spiders, and other spooky specimens in our collection, decorate paper bat masks, and try their luck at a blind touch table and guess a specimen by feel. Scavenger hunts and sketching supplies will be available to those looking for deeper engagement with our collection. Adults & children are encouraged to come in costume!
2025 Philadelphia Lantern Slide Salon
Celebrate Archives Month Philly in the Wagner's historic lecture hall as we view glass lantern slides from local special collections!
Collecting Insects in Brightest Africa (Fall Course)
FALL COURSE: ZOOLOGY SERIES with Professor Greg Cowper at the Parkway Central Library.
Collecting Insects in Brightest Africa will chronicle the adventures of hunting ‘small’ game in Africa.
October First Saturday Open House: The Birds, the Bees and the Pawpaw Trees
Join us as we unveil the Wagner's new native plant pollinator gardens and learn all about the birds, the bees and our Pawpaw trees!
Weeknights at the Wagner—A Flood of Pictures—Photography Deepens the Waters
Learn how illustrations, photographs and other visual communications came to permeate everyday lives and experiences in the United States.
History of Cartography: Depicting Time and Space (Fall Course)
This class is sold out. Join the waiting list HERE.
Over six weeks, this course will look at some important aspects of maps to understand how maps function. By putting them into their specific social and cartographic contexts, the course will examine how they represent and convey ideas about the world we live in.
September First Saturday Open House
Explore the Wagner museum during our Back to School Open House!
Dive deeper into the Wagner’s history and collections with a guided tour at 1 and 2:30 pm. Held in collaboration with Girard College, visitors can also stop by Founders Hall Museum to learn more about the connections between William Wagner, Stephen Girard, and their lasting legacies of supporting education.
Summer Fridays in the Field!
Explore your local ecosystem this summer at the Wagner's Fridays in the Field! Beginning June 20th, the Wagner Teaching Garden will be open for independent educational exploration every Friday from 1 - 3:30pm.
Summer Fridays in the Field!
Explore your local ecosystem this summer at the Wagner's Fridays in the Field! Beginning June 20th, the Wagner Teaching Garden will be open for independent educational exploration every Friday from 1 - 3:30pm.
Summer Fridays in the Field!
Explore your local ecosystem this summer at the Wagner's Fridays in the Field! Beginning June 20th, the Wagner Teaching Garden will be open for independent educational exploration every Friday from 1 - 3:30pm.
North Philadelphia History Festival: Return of the Freedom Library
Discover the heart and soul of North Philadelphia this July with the North Philadelphia History Festival! Join Scribe Video Center along with other North Philadelphia partners as the Wagner's Teaching Garden is transformed into a reimagined Freedom Library. Current and former neighbors will share their lived experiences, elder jazz musicians will recount legendary stories, and community members will explore what it means to protect Black Historic Districts.
Summer Fridays in the Field!
Explore your local ecosystem this summer at the Wagner's Fridays in the Field! Beginning June 20th, the Wagner Teaching Garden will be open for independent educational exploration every Friday from 1 - 3:30pm.