Power Machinery 1st Floor, East Wing
By the late 19th century, America's Industrial Revolution was moving full steam ahead. This hall follows the development of the increasingly efficient power machinery that helped the United States become a world leader in industrial production during this time. Full-size engines and models illustrate attempts to harness atmospheric force (1660-1700), the early age of steam power (1700-1770), the development of high-pressure and high-speed engines (1800-1920). The exhibition also shows the evolution of steam boilers and the steam turbine and progress in the techniques of harnessing water power. A number of pumps, waterwheels, and historic internal combustion engines are also on view.
The city of Philadelphia, the National Park Service and the general march of urban disorder have pretty much messed up Independence Mall, the greensward that should be a centerpiece of this city's historic district. The Mall's open blocks - created by demolishing existing neighborhoods in the 1950s - front the dour but elegant brick pile of Independence Hall, framing it nicely for snapshots but deflating the urban energy around it. The mall has become cluttered with banal NPS buildings that serve commercial tourist interests but degrade the dignity of the historic experience and is surrounded by ugly offices built decades ago in shapes and styles that have not retained any charm for contemporary visitors.
Gunboat Philadelphia
Permanent
3rd Floor, East Wing
Built in 1776, the gunboat Philadelphia is the oldest American fighting vessel in existence. She sank on October 11, 1776, in Lake Champlain during the battle of Valcour Island, when an American flotilla commanded by General Benedict Arnold was defeated by a British fleet. The gunboat Philadelphia was raised in 1935 and came to the museum in 1964, complete with the 24-pound ball that sent it to the bottom.
Historical video footage of the 1935 raising of the gunboat Philadelphia from Lake Champlain (runs continuously)
3rd Floor, West Wing
This dollhouse represents a romantic view of the life of a large and affluent American family in the early 1900s. Its 23 rooms contain more than 800 miniature items, including furniture, linens, toys, and other household items. The late Faith Bradford, a records expert at the Library of Congress, spent more than a half century designing and building the miniature furnishings; it was donated to the museum in 1951. Also on view is Ms. Bradford's scrapbook, which shows her methods of creating the house.
Notes:
• Because many of the musical instruments are used during special concerts, some instruments may be off view periodically.
• The south gallery remains under renovation.
Electricity Hall, 1st Floor, East Wing
This exhibition reveals -- through five interwoven stages -- how Thomas Edison's incandescent electric light bulb and other inventions began to transform our world and examines the similarities and differences between the process of invention in Edison's era and today.
Highlights include:
• several of Edison's early light bulbs
Artifact Walls near the Constitution Ave. Entrance
This case examines celluloid, the world's first commercially successful plastic, which was invented by John Wesley Hyatt in 1869. Initially made to imitate natural materials, celluloid was mainly used to manufacture inexpensive yet stylish goods -- ranging from beauty accessories and housewares to postcards and advertising keepsakes -- proving that inexpensive but durable products could be made from plastic. Though celluloid was no longer a popular material by the 1940s, it remains the primary material for Ping-Pong balls.
Main Corridors of each wing
Six large, iconic artifacts in the main corridor of each wing highlight the key themes of the exhibitions in that wing:
• The John Bull Locomotive identifies the transportation and technology wing of the museum (1st Floor, East Wing Corridor).
On view is the steam locomotive John Bull and a section of the first iron railroad bridge in America.The John Bull was built in 1831 and ran for 35 years, pulling trains of passengers and cargo between the two largest cities of the time, Philadelphia and New York. The locomotive propelled trains at 25 to 30 miles per hour. The John Bull, which was ordered from England by Robert Stevens for his railroad company, was named after the mythical gentleman who symbolized England. It was assembled by Isaac Dripps, a young steamboat mechanic who had never seen a locomotive before.
• The Vassar Telescope identifies thescience and innovation wing of the museum (1st Floor, West Wing Corridor).
On view is the telescope used by Maria Mitchell (1818-1889), the first professional woman astronomer in the United States. She gained recognition in scientific circles through establishing the orbit of a new comet in 1847. The following year, she became the first woman elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and from 1865 to 1888 she served as professor of astronomy at Vassar Female College. In 1963, the president of Vassar donated
Mitchell's astronomical telescope, built by Henry Fitz, to the Smithsonian.
• The Greensboro Lunch Counter identifies the American ideals wing of the museum (2nd Floor, East Wing Corridor).
This section of the Woolworth's lunch counter with 4 stools from Greensboro, North Carolina, represents the February 1, 1960 sit-in that challenged segregated eating places. On February 1, 1960, four African American students -- Ezell A. Blair, Jr. (now Jibreel Khazan), Franklin E. McCain, Joseph A. McNeil, and David L. Richmond -- sat down at this counter and politely asked for service. Their request was refused. When asked to leave, they remained in their seats. They were all enrolled at the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College. Their "passive sit-down demand" began one of the first sustained sit-ins and ignited a youth-led movement to challenge injustice and racial inequality throughout the South. See February 2010 Smithsonian magazine, pp. 28-29.
• The George Washington Sculpture identifies the American lives wing of the museum (2nd Floor, West Wing Corridor).
On view is the marble statue of George Washington commissioned by Congress in 1832 to commemorate the centennial of our first president's birth. The artist, Horatio Greenough, modeled his figure of Washington on a classical Greek statue of Zeus, but the semi-clothed statue attracted controversy and criticism as soon as it arrived in the city in 1841. In 1908, Congress transferred the statue to the Smithsonian, where it went on view in the Castle.
Then in 1964, it was moved to the museum for its opening.
• Civil War Draft Wheel (installed July 14, 2011) identifies the American wars and politics wing of the museum (3rd Floor, East Wing Corridor). This Civil War draft wheel demonstrates the beginning of conscription (military draft) in the United States; it functioned as part of a procedure to select men for military service. The names of men eligible for the draft were written on slips of paper and dropped into holes inside the wheel. An official pulled out names to fill the ranks of the Union army. (Replaces Clara Barton's Red Cross ambulance.)
• Disneyland's Dumbo the Flying Elephant identifies the entertainment, sports, and music wing of the museum (3rd Floor, West Wing Corridor).
On view is one of the elephants from the Dumbo the Flying Elephant ride from the original Disneyland theme park in Los Angeles, California.
Gunboat Philadelphia
Permanent
3rd Floor, East Wing
Built in 1776, the gunboat Philadelphia is the oldest American fighting vessel in existence. She sank on October 11, 1776, in Lake Champlain during the battle of Valcour Island, when an American flotilla commanded by General Benedict Arnold was defeated by a British fleet. The gunboat Philadelphia was raised in 1935 and came to the museum in 1964, complete with the 24-pound ball that sent it to the bottom.
Historical video footage of the 1935 raising of the gunboat Philadelphia from Lake Champlain (runs continuously)
The Miniature World of Faith Bradford: The Dolls' House
Permanent3rd Floor, West Wing
This dollhouse represents a romantic view of the life of a large and affluent American family in the early 1900s. Its 23 rooms contain more than 800 miniature items, including furniture, linens, toys, and other household items. The late Faith Bradford, a records expert at the Library of Congress, spent more than a half century designing and building the miniature furnishings; it was donated to the museum in 1951. Also on view is Ms. Bradford's scrapbook, which shows her methods of creating the house.
Musical Instruments Hall
Permanent 3rd Floor, West Wing, North Gallery
The Hall of Musical Instruments -- made up of a Concert Hall and north and south galleries -- presents samples of instruments and music relating to the history, performance styles and techniques of European and American music and the development of musical instruments dating from the 17th century. Some have been carefully restored to playing condition.
Included in the Hall are several instruments made by Antonio Stradivari, universally acknowledged to have been the greatest of all violin makers. The Servais Cello (1701) is considered to be one of the best preserved Stradivarius cellos. Also included is the Herbert R. Axelrod Quartet of Decorated Instruments, also made by Stradivari. Among only 11 rare decorated Stradivarius instruments that survive today, the Axelrod Quartet features the following: Violin, the Ole Bull (1687); Viola, the Axelrod (1695); and Violin, the Greffuhle (1709). While generally on display, these instruments also are used for performances of the Smithsonian Chamber Music Society.Notes:
• Because many of the musical instruments are used during special concerts, some instruments may be off view periodically.
• The south gallery remains under renovation.
Electricity: Lighting a Revolution
PermanentElectricity Hall, 1st Floor, East Wing
This exhibition reveals -- through five interwoven stages -- how Thomas Edison's incandescent electric light bulb and other inventions began to transform our world and examines the similarities and differences between the process of invention in Edison's era and today.
Highlights include:
• several of Edison's early light bulbs
Celluloid: The First Plastic
TBAArtifact Walls near the Constitution Ave. Entrance
This case examines celluloid, the world's first commercially successful plastic, which was invented by John Wesley Hyatt in 1869. Initially made to imitate natural materials, celluloid was mainly used to manufacture inexpensive yet stylish goods -- ranging from beauty accessories and housewares to postcards and advertising keepsakes -- proving that inexpensive but durable products could be made from plastic. Though celluloid was no longer a popular material by the 1940s, it remains the primary material for Ping-Pong balls.
Landmark Objects
PermanentMain Corridors of each wing
Six large, iconic artifacts in the main corridor of each wing highlight the key themes of the exhibitions in that wing:
• The John Bull Locomotive identifies the transportation and technology wing of the museum (1st Floor, East Wing Corridor).
On view is the steam locomotive John Bull and a section of the first iron railroad bridge in America.The John Bull was built in 1831 and ran for 35 years, pulling trains of passengers and cargo between the two largest cities of the time, Philadelphia and New York. The locomotive propelled trains at 25 to 30 miles per hour. The John Bull, which was ordered from England by Robert Stevens for his railroad company, was named after the mythical gentleman who symbolized England. It was assembled by Isaac Dripps, a young steamboat mechanic who had never seen a locomotive before.
• The Vassar Telescope identifies thescience and innovation wing of the museum (1st Floor, West Wing Corridor).
On view is the telescope used by Maria Mitchell (1818-1889), the first professional woman astronomer in the United States. She gained recognition in scientific circles through establishing the orbit of a new comet in 1847. The following year, she became the first woman elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and from 1865 to 1888 she served as professor of astronomy at Vassar Female College. In 1963, the president of Vassar donated
Mitchell's astronomical telescope, built by Henry Fitz, to the Smithsonian.
• The Greensboro Lunch Counter identifies the American ideals wing of the museum (2nd Floor, East Wing Corridor).
This section of the Woolworth's lunch counter with 4 stools from Greensboro, North Carolina, represents the February 1, 1960 sit-in that challenged segregated eating places. On February 1, 1960, four African American students -- Ezell A. Blair, Jr. (now Jibreel Khazan), Franklin E. McCain, Joseph A. McNeil, and David L. Richmond -- sat down at this counter and politely asked for service. Their request was refused. When asked to leave, they remained in their seats. They were all enrolled at the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College. Their "passive sit-down demand" began one of the first sustained sit-ins and ignited a youth-led movement to challenge injustice and racial inequality throughout the South. See February 2010 Smithsonian magazine, pp. 28-29.
• The George Washington Sculpture identifies the American lives wing of the museum (2nd Floor, West Wing Corridor).
On view is the marble statue of George Washington commissioned by Congress in 1832 to commemorate the centennial of our first president's birth. The artist, Horatio Greenough, modeled his figure of Washington on a classical Greek statue of Zeus, but the semi-clothed statue attracted controversy and criticism as soon as it arrived in the city in 1841. In 1908, Congress transferred the statue to the Smithsonian, where it went on view in the Castle.
Then in 1964, it was moved to the museum for its opening.
• Civil War Draft Wheel (installed July 14, 2011) identifies the American wars and politics wing of the museum (3rd Floor, East Wing Corridor). This Civil War draft wheel demonstrates the beginning of conscription (military draft) in the United States; it functioned as part of a procedure to select men for military service. The names of men eligible for the draft were written on slips of paper and dropped into holes inside the wheel. An official pulled out names to fill the ranks of the Union army. (Replaces Clara Barton's Red Cross ambulance.)
• Disneyland's Dumbo the Flying Elephant identifies the entertainment, sports, and music wing of the museum (3rd Floor, West Wing Corridor).
On view is one of the elephants from the Dumbo the Flying Elephant ride from the original Disneyland theme park in Los Angeles, California.
