How Drexel University is Seen in ‘Philadelphia Revealed’
In Philadelphia Revealed: Unpacking the Attic, the newest exhibition from the Atwater Kent Collection at Drexel University, there are multiple Drexel University connections found in the more than 600 objects showing 350 years of Philadelphia history.
Some of those are hiding in plain sight, and some of those are saying “Hello!” to you when you enter the exhibition space at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA).
The exhibition, with a newly extended run until April 6, 2025, is free for anyone with a Drexel DragonCard. And the University’s free shuttle bus service, operating from both the University City and Queen Lane campuses, has a stop within walking distance to PAFA.
No matter how long you’ve lived in Philadelphia — and/or worked or studied at Drexel University — there’s so much to see and learn in the exhibit.
And while you’re there, you can see the below items with Drexel ties.
A gif of pages from the exhibition catalog designed by Drexel alumna Fiona Tran. Photographs courtesy of Fiona Tran.
A Catalog of Curiosities
Many of the objects in the exhibition can be seen in a catalog designed by Fiona Tran, BS graphic design ’23.
“Since many of the pieces from the Atwater Kent Collection had never been displayed before, I wanted the catalog to serve as a storytelling device and an extension of the exhibition,” said Tran. “Collaborating with the Atwater Kent Collection at Drexel throughout the process was crucial because that is how we reached the finished product! Holding the catalog in my hands was incredibly satisfying, especially after spending so much time building it digitally.”
From conception to sketching to reviewing and editing, the entire process took about five months to complete.
“When designing the catalog, I wanted it to ‘reveal’ the rich history of Philadelphia, blending past and present. My inspiration came not only from the collection itself but also from the practice of scrapbooking — piecing together memories and history through various materials,” said Tran. “I really enjoyed creating the collaged elements throughout the catalog, which has an immersive scrapbook feel. The cover is also a personal favorite!”
This is the second exhibition catalog Tran designed for Drexel; during her senior year, she helped design both the catalog and the exhibition for the Drexel Founding Collection’s ELECTRIFIED: 50 Years of Electric Factory. Based off that experience, Mark Willie, associate program director of graphic design and teaching professor in the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, recommended Tran to the Atwater Kent Collection at Drexel for the Philadelphia Revealed catalog, which Tran took as freelance work. It’s one of several freelance projects she’s completed since graduating and working as a design apprentice at J2, a branding and creative agency in Philadelphia.
Dragons as Gallery Attendants
The Atwater Kent Collection at Drexel hired two Drexel history majors as gallery attendants, supporting PAFA’s education program: Bailey Michalak ’26 and Emma Johnson ’25.
They spend six hours a day two days a week in the exhibition, where they are on hand to help visitors, answer questions and look through the exhibit to make sure things are in order. Both said that the one object that people ask about the most is a floral carpet bag from the 1900s near the podium where they’re stationed.
“I talk to a lot of older guests who ask if they can donate objects or say something like, ‘I had this!’ or ‘I remember this’ about something in the exhibit,” said Michalak, who also has a European studies minor.
Their favorite objects? For Michalak, it’s a jacket pinned with nearly 750 colorful buttons collected in the last decades of the 20th century (more on that below). As for Johnson, her picks go back to the first half of the 20th century: the Emergency Aid of Pennsylvania uniform and a bowl used in the draft lottery system for both World Wars.
Johnson, who also is a Spanish minor, had previously worked with the Atwater Kent Collection at Drexel for a World War I research project last summer, and will continue that project during a co-op position, funded by the Lenfest Center for Cultural Partnerships, with the 103rd Armory this coming spring and summer.
“As I was reconnecting with some of the people involved, they suggested that I apply for this Philadelphia Revealed position since I was familiar with the people and the collection. I was excited to be involved because I want to go into museum work after college and I love being able to get experience before I graduate!” she said.
A screenshot showing how the Drexel-designed Instagram filter appears for users to virtually try on hats from the exhibition.
Hats Off and On
Several hats are on display in the exhibit, and you can try on a few — virtually.
Students in a class taught by Nick Jushchyshyn, program director of digital media and virtual production in the Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, created an Instagram filter that lets users “wear” these hats:
- A women’s sage green velvet pillbox hat (circa 1960) designed by Lauralou Courtney Bates, BS home economics ’46, MS ’48, who was one of the first women to receive a master's fellowship at Drexel.
- A Philadelphia Gas Works fabric, steel and plastic hat (circa 1965) with red embroidered “P.G.W.” initials.
- A men’s Panama straw hat with a black ribbon band, made by George Eakle for the John B. Stetson Company (circa 1940).
- A women’s boater hat made from straw and silk (circa 1900).
- A women’s purple-blue blocked felt hat (date unknown) from the John B. Stetson Company.
- A men’s black top hat made from beaver and silk (circa 1900) from the John Wanamaker & Co. department store.
A Historic Diary from a Historic Moment
Frances “Fanny” Allen de Ford (1855–1937), MD, was 21 years old when she visited the monumental 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia and recorded her experiences visiting what is now considered the first world’s fair.
About 11 years later, de Ford graduated from the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania — the first degree-granting medical school for women, which is a legacy institution of today’s Drexel’s College of Medicine. With her physician husband, she opened a practice in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia, where she was known as an advocate for better sanitary and hygienic conditions.
Jushchyshyn and his students created a digital flip book combining de Ford’s diary excerpts with historical photos in the Atwater Kent Collection, as well as a photo of de Ford from the Drexel University Legacy Center Archives and Special Collections, located within the College of Medicine.
A Jacket with More Buttons Than You’ve Ever Seen
There are nearly 750 buttons pinned on a navy blue polyester and cotton jacket in the exhibit — and you can learn more about them through an interactive digital display also created by Jushchyshyn and his students. The buttons vary in color, size, decade and scope (cultural, political, local, national) and were collected by the jacket’s owner, the late Philadelphia photojournalist Neil Benson, from the 1970s to 1990s.
“Every time I pass by the jacket, I feel like I see a new pin. Sometimes it's like a scavenger hunt!” said Michalak, the student gallery attendant.
A Drexel Literary Magazine Looks Back
The Drexerd was a literary magazine published at Drexel from 1921 through 1942. The students published a special sesquicentennial issue in June of 1926, right before the United States reached its 150th birthday and Philadelphia hosted celebratory events for the Sesquicentennial International Exposition.
The striking Drexerd cover was framed and hung on a wall. It’s surrounded by other items related to the Sesquicentennial, including a few from the same donor, Norman W. Fesmire.
The Eliza Otto doll is seated in the chair (top shelf) in the exhibition.
A 19th Century Doll With a 20th Century Drexel Tie
This doll — Eliza Otto — had a storied place in a historic family. She was played with by Mary and Elizabeth Kirkbride, daughters of Thomas Story Kirkbride, superintendent of the Institute of the Pennsylvania Hospital and founder of today’s American Psychiatric Association. The cloth doll with yarn hair wears a white nightgown and petticoats, crocheted jacket and white Mary Jane shoes, and sits on a small wooden chair. The doll dates to the 1870s, and the chair’s origin dates are unknown.
The doll and chair were donated by Elizabeth Kirkbride Creese Davis, who was related to Mary and Elizabeth on her mother’s side of the family. Davis’ father was James Creese, who was the sixth president of Drexel from 1945–1963.
The objects’ label also quotes Davis: “Eliza Otto has always been brought out to sit under the Christmas tree in the little chair that was also Tante Lisa’s and Aunt Mary’s.”
The Timmons Talker can be seen on the top level of the display case.
A Revolutionary Radio Speaker
John Spence Timmons (1893–1992), the inventor of the first radio loudspeaker, took night classes at Drexel before he became a pioneering electrician and business owner. This metal and wood cube radio speaker was called a “Timmons Talker” and was manufactured by the J. S. Timmons Company in Philadelphia, circa 1930.
For more information about Philadelphia Revealed visit: https://philadelphiahistory.org/philadelphiarevealed/.