Memorial Day Weekend Preservation Fest
Sunday, May 24, 2026
10:00 - 4:00pm EST
Considered the world’s first penitentiary, Eastern State’s architectural design served as a model for over 300 prisons across the globe. Now a National Historic Landmark and criminal justice museum, Eastern State staff carefully navigate decisions around conservation and preservation while interpreting the past and present of prison reform in the building’s historic cellblocks. Go beyond the typical tour. Learn how the site is preserved, explore rarely seen areas with preservation staff, and get hands-on with restoration techniques. Enjoy the following special activities, all included with admission.
- Guide-Led Tour & Discussion
The Guide-Led Tour and Discussion (12 PM on Weekdays and 11 AM on Weekends) will feature additional content exploring Eastern State Penitentiary’s preservation journey. This guided tour highlights the story of a community that came together to save history.
- Mini-Tour: Al Capone’s Cell
In this tour visitors will uncover layers of the past, focusing on one of the most talked-about spaces at Eastern State – the recreation of Al Capone’s cell. Learn how a routine project revealed hidden layers of painted decoration and how new archival discoveries shifted long-held assumptions about Capone’s time at Eastern State Penitentiary.
- Self-Guided Scavenger Hunt
Come explore the history of one of the most famous buildings in the field of prison architecture through our self-guided experience. Through a mixture of restored spaces and preserved ruins, visitors can learn about the bones of the building.
This program has been funded in part by a grant from the National Trust Preservation Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
About the Panelists:
We strive to make the penitentiary and our site, programs, and exhibits accessible to all visitors. Click here to learn more about accessibility and accommodations at ESPHS.
This program is part of A Time for Liberty: Our Shared History, Our Shared Future, a yearlong slate of free, inclusive programs exploring the evolving meanings of liberty and justice in America. A Time for Liberty is made possible with support from civic and cultural partners including the City of Philadelphia, America250PA, Campus250, the Philadelphia Funder Collaborative for the Semiquincentennial, the National Trust Preservation Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program series, do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
