Philadelphia, PA 19103-1189
(215) 567-7710
FAX (215) 567-7850
Contact: Communications and Development
The Free Library’s Rare Book Department Celebrates 75th Anniversary
PHILADELPHIA – The Free Library of Philadelphia is announcing the 75th anniversary of its Rare Book Department, located inside the Parkway Central Library at 1901 Vine Street.
Kelly Richards, President and Director of the Free Library of Philadelphia, highlighted the anniversary's importance. “For 75 years, we have hosted one of the nation’s premier public collections,” Richards said. “The Free Library is proud to share the opportunity to interact with and learn from the abundant history in the Rare Book Department.”
To commemorate the occasion, the Rare Book Department will extend its evening hours until 8 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month throughout 2024. On these days, visitors will also have the unique opportunity to enjoy a free behind-the-scenes program from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., an exclusive glimpse into the department’s rich and diverse collections. A few of these programs include:
- The “Cuneiform: An Ancient Writing System,” which delves into the 5,000-year-old Sumerian method of writing.
- And an exploration of the Free Library’s copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio.
The Rare Book Department will release further details on the rest of the upcoming programs online.
The Rare Book Department offers free access to exhibitions featuring items ranging from 3,000 BCE through the present day, including medieval manuscripts and cuttings, first editions by Edgar Allan Poe, and the largest Charles Dickens collection in the United States.
“We offer a free 11 a.m. Rare Book Department tour daily Monday through Saturday; if people would rather be self-guided, our four galleries are full of interesting objects to explore,” said Allison Freyermuth, head of the Rare Book Department. “It’s truly remarkable that a public library has a collection like ours.”
Join us throughout 2024 as we celebrate 75 years of preserving literary history and providing the community with a unique opportunity to explore one of the largest public library special collections in the United States.
For more information on the Rare Book Department, visit https://libwww.freelibrary.org/programs/rarebooks.
03/06/2024
Department of External Affairs, Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103-1189
(215) 567-7710, FAX (215) 567-7850