Ordering the Cosmos: Charles Willson Peale and The Philadelphia Museum

In 1790, Charles Willson Peale opened a museum containing "objects of natural history and things useful and curious" which he hoped might one day be recognized as a cultural and scientific repository for the nation. It was to represent the culmination of a long and distinguished career in art and science that made Peale one of the most remarkably versatile figures of his age.

Peale's Philadelphia Museum, to which Thomas Jefferson would later give many of the artifacts collected by Lewis and Clark during their pioneering trip across North America, began its focus on the flora and fauna of the Delaware Valley, but quickly expanded to include other parts of the country and ultimately objects from around the world. It set standards for museums that are still applicable today. Using images of Peale's remarkable collections of paintings and artifacts, naturalist and historian Robert Peck will discuss Peale's seminal contributions to American art and science and place his museum in its broader cultural, artistic and scientific context.

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. Our Annual Member Reception will follow this talk.

Program Schedule:

Museum open until 5:45 pm.

6 - 7:30 pm: Talk in the Lecture Hall.

7:30 - 8:30 pm: Reception in the Exhibit Hall.

The talk is free. The reception is free to current members. You may register for the lecture, the reception or both.

After the lecture, stay for our Annual Member Reception with wine & nibbles in the Exhibit Hall! Enjoy refreshments, exchange ideas with fellow members, and explore the Wagner's vast natural history collection at this special evening event. The reception is free for current members and $15 for guests.

Robert McCracken Peck, Senior Fellow, Emeritus of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, is a writer, naturalist, and historian who has traveled extensively in North and South America, Africa, Asia and Europe. He served as Special Assistant to the Academy's President and Director of the Academy's Natural History Museum before being named Fellow of the Academy in 1983. Peck is the author of eight books, an active member of the Philadelphia chapter of the Explorers Club, has served as a natural history consultant to many major institutions, and the recipient of many awards over his nearly 50-year career.

Some of his honors include the Academy of Natural Sciences' Richard Hopper Day Medal in 1991 for his work in interpreting natural history to the public, Philadelphia’s Wyck-Strickland Award for outstanding contributions to the cultural life of Philadelphia, and the Garden Club of America’s Sarah Chapman Francis Medal for environmental writing.

He has held fellowships at Harvard University’s Houghton Library (1994-1995 and 2010-2011), and at the Yale Center for British Art (1997); and has been a visiting scholar at the American Academy in Rome on three occasions (2014, 2017, and 2023). Mr. Peck’s photographs have been published in books, journals, and magazines and exhibited in museums across the U.S. In 1989 a new species of South American frog (one of three new species he discovered during an expedition to Ecuador) was named in his honor.

In his most recent book, Travels on the Edge, A Naturalist’s Notes from the Back of Beyond (2026) Mr. Peck recounts his fifty years of exploration on behalf of the Academy of Natural Sciences.

A dream that keeps growing…

In 1855, William Wagner had a dream of providing free science education to anyone who wanted to learn, regardless of background or ability to pay. Today, the Wagner offers more programs to more people than ever before! Your support helps us provide free education, not only through the museum, but through a wide range of courses, lectures, field trips, and children’s science programs. Donations also assist us in caring for the museum and library collections and in preserving our wonderful building, which was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1990. To learn more about what we do please visit our website.

In keeping with its original charter, admission to the lecture is free—donations are suggested to ensure the future and quality of Wagner's education programs. Folks are welcome to come to just the lecture, just the reception, or both. The reception is free for current members and $15 for guests.

Suggested Donations

$10/adult

$5/student

For any questions, please email communications@wagnerfreeinstitute.org or call 215-763-6529 x17.

If you would like to check your membership status or become a member, please email [email protected] or call 215-763-6529 x11.

Images:

Charles Willson Peale, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
'Amusement Here with Science is Combined,' Charles Willson Peale, date unknown, Ink of Paper, American Philosophical Society.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Wagner Free Institute of Science, 1700 West Montgomery Avenue, Philadelphia, United States

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