Reading period access: From May 1 to May 13, access to the Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center and the Fisher Fine Arts Library will be limited to PennCard holders and other Penn affiliates. Find more information.

  • Exhibit

Revolution at Penn?

Revolution at Penn? examines the formation of the university, the debates that divided the school during the American Revolution, and the compromises that reorganized it as the University of Pennsylvania in 1791. 

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February 13 - August 29, 2025
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Goldstein Family Gallery, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center, sixth floor
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Open to the Public

Hosted by: Kislak Center

Hand-colored image of a orator

Penn was at the center of early Philadelphia, long before the Ivy League and the ivory tower. Born out of the innovative and lofty ideals of Benjamin Franklin and leading Philadelphians, Penn could not escape the fractious political world of 18th century Pennsylvania. 

Revolution at Penn? examines conflicts around the formation, structure, and mission of the university in the era of the American Revolution: from debates about its mission in the 1750s and 1760s, to a devastating schism that tore the school apart in 1779, to eventual compromise and reorganization as the University of Pennsylvania in 1791. Political pamphlets, broadsides, maps, prints, manuscripts, and a full-scale replica of a colonial coffee house evoke the contentious era and provoke new questions about the place of universities in America, then and now. 

Revolution at Penn? is organized by the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts and features the collections of the University Archives and the Kislak Center. 

Funding for this exhibition is provided in part by the Philadelphia Funder Collaborative for the Semiquincentennial.

Plan Your Visit

Exhibit extended through August 29, 2025! This exhibition is free and open to the public and located in the Goldstein Gallery on the 6th floor of the Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center. Gallery hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, and during special events. 

Penn faculty, staff, and students must swipe their PennCard for access. Visitors from outside the Penn community must present a current, valid government or school-issued photo ID that contains an expiration date. Find more information to plan your visit

Featured image: Engraving of an orator, hand-colored. From The Universal Asylum and Columbian Magazine, July 1790, Plate 3 (Rare Book Collection, AP2 .A2 U6 vol. 5)

Event series

America 250 at Penn logo over an image of signatures

America 250 at Penn

The University of Pennsylvania, located in the heart of the city, was at the center of the dramatic events of 1776 and the Revolution that followed. 250 years later, partners across the university are exploring how history can help us better understand the present and create a sustainable and inclusive future.

Related Events

An illustrated map of the city of Philadelphia in the 18th century as seen from the Delaware river, with many ships in the foreground and buildings lining the shore
3/29/2025, 11:00am and 2:00pm

Walking Tour: Penn's Revolutionary Campus

Starting near the site of the University of Pennsylvania's original college campus at 5th and Arch Streets, this walking tour of Old City will bring to life stories of the places and people associated with Penn in the 18th century.

  • 11:00am - 4:00pm
  • Tours begin at 4th and Arch Streets
Open to the Public
A detailed engraving depicting a bustling coffeehouse. Guests are seated and standing around long, narrow tables, engaged in animated conversation.
  • Lecture
April 29, 2025

Brewing a Revolution: Coffee in Eighteenth-Century Philadelphia

In conjunction with the exhibit Revolution at Penn?, learn about the significance of Philadelphia’s coffeehouses as major sites of political activity and debate in the decade leading up to the Declaration of Independence.

  • 5:15pm - 7:30pm
  • Kislak Center Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion, 6th Floor, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center
Open to the Public
Books on display in the Revolution at Penn exhibit
May 12, 2025

Penn's American Revolution(s): A Virtual Tour

Join us for a virtual exploration of Revolution at Penn?, an exhibit examining the formation of the University during the American Revolution.

  • 12:00pm - 1:30pm
  • Virtual
Open to the Public

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