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3:41 AM / Wednesday February 19, 2025

2 Feb 2025

A guide to African American cultural and historic sites in Philadelphia — TOURS

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February 2, 2025 Category: Local Posted by:

During the 1800s, the Quaker abolitionist Johnson family sheltered Harriet Tubman and hundreds of other runaway enslaved Africans in the attic of their Germantown home. Today the Johnson House Historic Site remains as Philadelphia’s only intact and accessible stop on the Underground Railroad. Visitors can discover the dramatic history that occurred here through original artifacts, furnishings and other items dating back to the 18th century.

Johnson House
Photo by R. Kennedy for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®


VISITPHILLY.COM

The Black Journey: Seventh Ward Tour
Professionally-guided tour
The Black Journey: Seventh Ward Tour travels down the streets that were home to one in three 19th-century Black Philadelphians under the direction of an in-person guide. Tours meet in front of Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church every Sunday at 2 p.m. and explore sites in the neighborhood that was Philadelphia’s early epicenter of Black culture. See where W. E. B. Du Bois penned “The Philadelphia Negro” in 1899 and visit African American schools, churches, institutions, buildings and homes of residents, abolitionists, educators and Civil Rights activists (advance reservations required).
Where: Tours start at Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church, 419 S. 6th Street, Philadelphia, PA

Paul Robeson House and Museum
Photo by G. Widman for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®

Kennett Underground Railroad Center Tours
Professionally-guided tour
The Kennett Underground Railroad Center offers two hour-plus-long guide-led bus tours, visiting documented Underground Railroad sites, historic homes of local abolitionists and Quaker Meetinghouses where African Americans connected with their faith communities throughout the Kennett Square area. Tours run March through October on the third Sunday of each month at 1 p.m., departing from the Brandywine Valley Tourism Information Center.
Where: Brandywine Valley Tourism Information Center, 300 Greenwood Road, Kennett Square, PA

The simplicity of the Marian Anderson Residence Museum in Philadelphia belies the extraordinary accomplishments of the celebrated contralto during her lifetime. Every room of the modest childhood home contains personal items, musical mementos, artifacts and documents that highlight Anderson’s legacy as an artist and civil rights pioneer.

Marian Anderson Residence Museum
Photo by R. Kennedy for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®

Once Upon A Nation Storytelling Benches
Family-friendly Once Upon A Nation Storytelling Benches feature free true tales spun by professional (and often costumed) speakers at locations around Philadelphia’s Historic District. Told in just three to five minutes each, the stories recount details about some of our nation’s earliest citizens, well- and not-so-well-known, who shaped America’s history including Frederick Douglass, Ona Judge (an enslaved woman who escaped George Washington’s Philadelphia home) and Caroline LeCount, who successfully won the right for all people to ride in Philadelphia’s streetcars. Benches are open on select days Memorial Day through Labor Day.
Where: Various locations including Independence Square, 111 S. Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, PA

Founded by the Reverend Richard Allen in 1787, Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church is the mother church of the nation’s first black denomination. The current church building was constructed in 1889 and stands on the oldest parcel of land continuously owned by African-Americans. A museum on the lower level traces the history of the A.M.E. congregation and features the tomb of Richard Allen and other artifacts.

Mother Bethel AME Church
Photo by R. Kennedy for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®

Philadelphia Historic African American Tours
Step-on tour
Guide Charlene Palmore-Lewis’ step-on Philadelphia Historic African American Tours (you provide a van or bus and pick up your guide) take your group on a two- to two-and-a-half-hour excursion around some of Philadelphia’s most important sites, focusing in on the African American figures and stories key to each. The tour, customized to each group, visits locations like the Liberty Bell, President’s House, Philadelphia Museum of Art (and Julian Abele’s Rocky Steps), The African American Museum, Marian Anderson Residence, stops along The Underground Railroad, and even the legendary studios of Gamble and Huff.
Where: Pick up at Independence Visitor Center, 599 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA

The Philadelphia Inquirer Anti-Slavery Walking Tours
Self-guided tour
Early Philadelphians were heavily involved in the abolitionist movement, and the path of the Underground Railroad passed through the city helping enslaved people find freedom here or onward north into Canada. Two free self-guided Philadelphia Inquirer Anti-Slavery Walking Tours — one through Old City and Society Hill and another around Northwest Philadelphia — guide visitors to anti-slavery landmarks like the Henry Minton House, where Frederick Douglass attended meetings and John Brown is said have stayed on his way to raid Harpers Ferry, and Germantown’s Johnson House Historic Site which served as an Underground Railroad stop and legend says hosted Harriet Tubman.
Where: Various locations including Johnson House Historic Site, 6306 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA

In view of the Liberty Bell on Independence Mall, the open-air President’s House tells the story of the home where Presidents Washington and Adams lived during their terms and where nine enslaved people served the first president. Features such as the video re-enactments and the display of the enslaved names help people examine the role of freedom in a new nation.

Presidents House
Photo by M. Kennedy for GPTMC

The Philadelphia Inquirer Black History Historical Marker Tour
Self-guided tour
Philadelphia’s history is rich with important moments involving the Black community, but many aren’t tied to a specific museum or attraction. Instead, they are memorialized by permanent historical markers which help preserve these legacies around the city. This self-guided Philadelphia Inquirer Black History Historical Marker Tour map helps lead you through the city and learn more about figures like 19th- and 20th-century painter Henry Ossawa Tanner, a young Wilt Chamberlain and the Christian Street YMCA where got his start and Laura Wheeler Waring who painted portraits of W. E. B. Du Bois and Marian Anderson.
Where: Various locations including Paul Robeson House & Museum, 4951 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA

We Got You mural-Tarik
Photo courtesy VISIT PHILADELPHIA®

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