University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Anthropology Senior Theses Department of Anthropology Summer 2013 Behind The Gates: The Wagner Free Institute of Science and its Neighborhood, 1865-today Elizabeth C. Doi University of Pennsylvania Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/anthro_seniortheses Part of the Anthropology Commons Recommended Citation Doi, Elizabeth C., "Behind The Gates: The Wagner Free Institute of Science and its Neighborhood, 1865-today" (2013). Anthropology Senior Theses. Paper 147. This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/anthro_seniortheses/147 For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Behind The Gates: The Wagner Free Institute of Science and its Neighborhood, 1865-today Abstract This paper explores the relationship between museums and the neighborhoods around them. It looks specifically at the agnerW Free Institute of Science in North Philadelphia. The research begins with the founding of the Wagner in 1855, then focuses on major changes in the institution and community through the 20th century, and ends with an observational analysis of the relationship today. The Wagner and its neighborhood had a close relationship through the 1950’s, when the neighborhood experienced a rapid demographic change and the Wagner simultaneously reduced its programs. This is a break from the founding ideals of the Wagner, which especially targeted underserved audiences. Today the relationship is murkier, the neighborhood is once again going through a period of rapid demographic change, but the Wagner does not view its neighborhood as its primary audience. This paper, ultimately, tries to explore the idea of communities: how communities are defined and who decides which communities are relevant.