Paul Robeson House and Museum
Located at 4951 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19139. In West Philadelphia, the Paul Robeson House and Museum is an archive and memorial to the life of the famous actor, singer, and activist Paul Robeson. It is managed by the West Philadelphia Cultural Alliance.
Paul Robeson House and Museum is situated near the corner of 45th and Chestnut Streets and is open by appointment. The museum offers a variety of exhibits, including paintings, record albums, and photos. In addition to a variety of educational programming, the Paul Robeson House and Museum also hosts traveling lectures and concerts. Currently, the museum is offering a special exhibit titled Paul Robeson: Up Close and Personal. The exhibit is designed to provide an interactive and entertaining way to learn about Robeson’s life and work. It is open Thursday to Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm. There are also tours of the exhibit available.
The Paul Robeson House and Museum also has a Youth Docent Training Program that connects Robeson’s political activities and artistic activities to the site. These young people are also expected to synthesize the information they learn by creating new media for the museum. This is one of the main reasons the museum is aiming to raise $50 thousand this year.
Paul Robeson House and Museum were purchased by the West Philadelphia Cultural Alliance in 1994. Frances Aulston, who was the director of the Alliance, wanted to make the house an art center in West Philly. She also wanted to pay off the mortgage. The Cultural Alliance raised thirty thousand dollars for a down payment on the house. Throughout the next twenty years, Aulston worked on the house. She was aware that another owner might take over the property. In 2000, the house was named a National Historic Landmark.
After the death of Aulston, Vernoca Michael took over as the executive director of the West Philadelphia Cultural Alliance. He had two main goals for the Paul Robeson House and Museum: to pay off the mortgage and to make repairs to the row houses. During his tenure, he thought of his predecessor. Learn more.
In addition to raising money for the mortgage, Vernoca Michael helped raise money for the restoration of the Paul Robeson House and Museum. The house was a focal point for the advancement of African American communities in the Princeton area for over a century. It is now the headquarters of the West Philadelphia Cultural Alliance.
The house was also purchased by the Pennsylvania Historical Museum Commission, which recognized it as a National Historic Preservation site. The house is managed by the West Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, which also manages the Paul Robeson House Museum-Institute. The Institute is an archive of Paul Robeson’s life and work. Aulston is also a cultural historian and has turned the house into a rich cultural center.
The Paul Robeson House and the Paul Robeson House Museum have been awarded a grant of $1.6 million from the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund. The grant will allow the Paul Robeson House and Museum to continue its work. The museum will also train high school students to become docents and teach them about the life and work of Paul Robeson. Next article.