Established | 1812 |
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Location | 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Coordinates | 39°57′25″N 75°10′17″W / 39.9570°N 75.1714°W |
Type | Natural history museum |
Collection size | 17+ million specimens |
President | Scott Cooper, PhD |
Public transit access | SEPTA bus: 32, 33, Suburban Station |
Website | www.ansp.org |
Official name | Academy of Natural Sciences |
Type | City |
Designated | May 15, 2013 |
Location | 302 Market St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Marker Text | Founded nearby in 1812, it is the oldest natural science institution in the Americas and a leading resource for the study of life on Earth, with outstanding exhibits and scientific collections. It relocated to Logan Square in 1876, and has been part of Drexel University since 2011. |
The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, formerly the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, is the oldest natural science research institution and museum in the Americas. It was founded in 1812, by many of the leading naturalists of the young American republic with an expressed mission of "the encouragement and cultivation of the sciences". It has sponsored expeditions, conducted original environmental and systematics research, and amassed natural history collections containing more than 17 million specimens. The Academy also organizes public exhibits and educational programs for both schools and the general public.