Latter-day buildings of like impressiveness—the U.S. mint, the art museum, the free library—would seem to be improvements upon the models of the time of Strickland and Walter. Following these designers there was an architectural "dark age" in Phila delphia until the Centennial Exposition caused an awakening. The T-Square club (1883), the school of architecture at the uni versity of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia Chapter, American institute of Architects, have accomplished much in community, city and regional planning and in influencing architectural designs.
On the leveled top of Fairmount, at the point where the park way joins the park, and looking up the Schuylkill, stands the new $20,000,000 Pennsylvania Art museum, opened on March 26, 1928. In situation and design, this group suggests the Parthenon and the Acropolis—an impressive Greek imitation, of severity and dignity. This building, in which delicate curves instead of straight lines are used, is of Minnesota stone. The architectural details in the cornice, as well as the 4 ac. of roofs, are of glazed polychrome terra-cotta. Colour is much used. The seven strata in the dolomite quarry from which the stone was secured vary from a pinkish yellow to a yellowish-grey. The museum is the home of important collections of paintings hitherto inadequately housed. It also offers educational facilities, providing a panoramic history of for its students and visitors in a series of 37 "period" rooms, in which works of art are shown in their appropriate surroundings.
The American Philosophical society, an outgrowth of Franklin's "Junto" (1727) and the American Society for Promoting and Propagating Useful Knowledge (1766), was organized in 1769.
It is housed in Independence square (Frankliniana, 14,000 vol.; library, 8o,000). Other scientific societies are the Franklin insti tute (1824), essentially a society for the promotion of applied science; the Academy of Natural Sciences (1812) ; the Wagner institute (1855), primarily a society for spreading science among the people; the Spring Garden institute (1851), for teaching useful arts to wage-earning youths; the Commercial museum, containing exhibits illustrating world-wide industrial progress; and the Geographical society.
Early publishers, 17th and 18th centuries, issued Bibles—in German, as well as English,—newspapers, almanacs and maga zines. The Ephrata, Saur and Aitken Bibles, Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac, many Quaker books, the early Bradford publi cations, early magazines (especially Joseph Dennie's Portfolio 1801-37), Pennsylvania histories by Thomas, Budd, Smith and Proud, and Charles Brockden Brown's novels are notable publica tions. Tom Moore, the poet, and Edgar Allan Poe lived in the city, which was also for a time the home of Longfellow, Holmes, Whittier and Lowell. Godey's (1850-77), Graham's and Sartain's magazines as well as Robert Walsh's American Quar terly Review (1827-37) were successful publications; and Mathew Cary, George Lippard, Robert Montgomery Bird, with the Hop kinsons—Francis and Joseph—and the Neals—Alice and Joseph C.—won notable names. Later, Walt Whitman, Bayard Taylor, George H. Boker, T. Buchanan Reed and Charles G. Leland were of literary consequence. They were succeeded by S. Weir Mitchell, Frank Stockton, R. H. Davis, Horace Howard Furness, F. E.
Schelling, Owen Wister and Agnes Repplier. To-day there are about 200 publishers, including Lippincotts of the third generation. The newspapers are The Evening Ledger (1914) ; The Record (Ind. Dem., 1870) ; The Inquirer (Rep. 1829) ; and The Evening Bulletin (1847). The Public Ledger, prominent for many years af ter 1836, merged with the Inquirer in 1934. Outstanding editors: Poulson, Chandler, Forney, McClure and G. W. Childs (q.v.).