The African American Museum in Philadelphia
The African American Museum in Philadelphia
The African American Museum in Philadelphia
3.5
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
12:00 PM - 5:00 PM
About
The museum covers the roots of African-Americans and their role in U.S. history, with a focus on the history and experience of slavery and captivity, as well as the development of Black culture.
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: Chinatown
How to get there
- Chinatown • 3 min walk
- 8th St • 4 min walk
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2,971 within 3 miles
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
3.5
125 reviews
Excellent
34
Very good
29
Average
34
Poor
21
Terrible
7
Live Life
Atlantic City, NJ160 contributions
Feb 2020 • Family
We decided to visit during Black History Month on a Saturday. We assumed there would be special events and/or exhibits. Unfortunately, there were none and the museum didn't make up for it. It saddens me to write this but it needs tremendous help. There's no flow or progression of history. It was random information that appeared to be specific to Philadelphia and we walked away confused. Information is too disjointed and alot of text throughout the museum was in very small font that made it hard to read. Honestly, they need a total refresh of decor and history exhibits, specifically themes with a continuous progression. The museum in its current shape should be free.
Written February 16, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Josh D
New York City, NY895 contributions
Sep 2023 • Solo
I took an African American history class at Temple during the fall 2022 and I happened to pay attention and show up to class and the professor became one of my number one fans!! I know you have no idea what that means but he gave me a 100 on my final paper and then wrote a recommendation for me where he said I build bridges between people and also he gave me 10 dollars once and said to get lunch on him!! He made me very interested in African American history and so I’ve been trying to learn more!! I watch a lot of videos of Malcolm X and I wrote papers and Marcus Garvey and WEB Dubois but I don’t know that much about the first half of African American history!! They had a lot of things here about the black dudes during the 17770s through the 1860s!! It had videos of dudes that pretended to be historical people and you can click buttons to learn different things about them!! I will come back here a lot of times!!
Written September 10, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
bhlraven1916
Atlanta, GA1,506 contributions
Jan 2019 • Solo
Really had a great time visiting today. Friendly staff. The Timeline when you enter is truly remarkable; I'm not going to go into great detail and spoil it for you🤐 Once you go to the next level there's a virtual piece for kids that explains various segments of history. The next level are really cool exhibits that focuses on cotton and how it built America. Must see if you're in Philadelphia. There's a huge parking lot next to the museum. Get ready to pay $12 as you'll need about a good 1 1/2 to 2 hours to see everything.
Written January 21, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
QuackerzDaTraveler
Philadelphia, PA248 contributions
Nov 2018
What I love about this museum is it’s perfect size. It’s not overwhelming and has just enough exhibits to keep it engaging for any age. It is 4 floors with the lobby, African American history in Philadelphia, and some key African American inspirational figures, you more then likely didn’t learn during Black History Month, on the first two floors. The the top two floors are reserved for special exhibits which at the moment is Cotton by John Dowell. I highly recommend trying to see this compelling exhibit and museum!
Written November 8, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
happytourist36
Ottawa, Canada248 contributions
We went to this museum knowing it had great possibilities but not reading a review before hand. It presents the history of African Americans from the perpective of famous African Americans who helped to built the country and fought for their rights. The museum has a lot of visual and auditorial displays which is a nice change of pace. We learned the struggles from famous activists, an opera singer, a business man, a housekeeper, a doctor and others. We were also treated to a one man play. We were able to ask questions to the actor afterwards. We also appreciated watching an interesting documentary about the struggles of the civil rights movements in the south during the 1960's. We were happy we took the time to visit this museum. Later during our trip, I bought children's books for teachers to read during Black History Month in the school where I work.
Written August 22, 2010
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Amanda Moss
Lafayette, IN117 contributions
May 2019 • Family
As someone who has been to many different museums mostly in the midwest dedicated to African American history; this one was definitely lacking and left my children feeling like we were ripped off. With all the low cost to free events to do in Philadelphia; this is definitely one that I would skip.
Written May 26, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
James D
Philadelphia, PA101 contributions
Mar 2017 • Family
The exhibits are very underwhelming. I would strongly urge the directors and curators to visit the Great Blacks In Wax Museum and the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in Baltimore, Maryland as a means to gauge the potential for a more comprehensive use of this valuable space. That said, the interactive exhibits are interesting. But so much MORE could be said about the Philadelphia experience - the Black church, education and the schools, civil rights, entertainment, and business, just to begin. What is the history of Black people in the Philadelphia region. This museum fails to tell the story.
Written February 14, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
missv760
Philadelphia, PA1 contribution
Mar 2016 • Family
My Children and I have lived in the Philadelphia area for a year now. We have been trying out the museums and attractions in the city because the small town we came from had few to none. Throughout our quest to find museums and educational activities we have tried to visit the African American Museum but were always led elsewhere because the line was too long, the price or parking was not feasible. Some family from back home came to visit and while we boasted of the wonderful museums that we had been to, we spoke of this one saying we were not able to visit there yet. Our family decided to go. We were let down greatly. We expected to see so much more. We expected to learn so much more. It just wasn't there. I would have thought that we would gotten to experience some of the things that were important in African American History, such as the travel to this country. There was nothing about slavery. There wasn't anything about music, religion, call and response, clothing, etc. There was a lot of art, but this isn't an art museum. I am sorry but the historians and curators are not doing a good job at depicting the legacy of African American history especially the impact it has made in Philadelphia. I thought it would be a learning experience for my children and a way to show our visitors that Philadelphia is what our hometown is not. I am sad to say that the other museums such as the National Liberty Museum had more meaningful African American history than its namesake. Thoroughly disappointed and dissatisfied. I know that our history has a story, a timeline, along with some very interesting people, places and inventions. I did not see any of those things during my visit and for that I am not pleased. This place is a forum to get our history out. The Jewish American History museum is definitely going to make sure that the story of their people is going to be heard. Why can't we say the same for the AAMP.
Written March 21, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gail H
Philadelphia, PA33 contributions
Dec 2015
I have a bucket list of Philly sites that I need to visit, and finally made it to the African American Museum. Besides explaining the role of African Americans in Philadelphia, and thus early American, history on the first floor, this museum also has a wonderful exhibit for children on the 2nd floor which is fun for adults as well. It currently also has an exhibit about African emigration to India which is fascinating, explaining how Africans in India (called Siddis) had far greater opportunities for upward mobility than their counterparts in the Americas. This museum is definitely worth an hour or so of your time.
Written December 29, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
GMFC
Panama City, Panama28 contributions
Nov 2013 • Solo
This is such an important part of the American story, so it's sad that it's not being better told. The ground floor covers slavery and emancipation - history doesn't get much more interesting and dramatic than this, but the way it's set up makes it almost impossible to appreciate. The space throws together a lot of text on panels, and audio segments based on themes. Every time someone touches the panel on a theme, the room descends into darkness, so if you're trying to read a panel you are stuck standing in the room squinting into the dark. Such bad design. The next level has videos of actors playing real African Americans from the time of slavery - a bit cheesy and hard to hear with them all next to each other. The whole next two levels were an exhibition of a family of artists - I couldn't really get a handle on who they were or why they had so much space accorded them in this place. I feel like either I missed, or the museum missed, what it's remit is. There is so much more they could cover in terms of civil rights and contemporary life, and what is already there needs much better design. Would also be helpful to have more staff/volunteer interaction. I hope the museum gets better - would be a pity not to have this voice in the mix.
Written November 10, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
How much time should we allow for this museum?
Written December 23, 2018
I would allow at least two hours to be able to fully experience all the exhibits
Written January 6, 2019
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