Mutter Museum in Philadelphia Plots Expansion for Next Year

"The museum will merge its current location on 19 South 22nd Street with the adjacent Swedenborgian Church and Parish House on 2129 Chestnut Street. This plan has been in the works for awhile, with the Mütter having purchased the property for $9.3 million in 2023. So far, the museum has raised $27 million through an initial phase of fundraising "to support plans to create a cohesive campus," the release indicated."

""We are not content to rest on our past; we see a need to move forward with plans for innovation, inclusion, and renewed purpose," president and CEO Larry Kaiser said in a statement. The plan, he continued, will "unify our campus, creating engaging, accessible spaces, including significantly expanding the Mütter Museum's galleries, and providing more programming that will inspire future generations of healthcare leaders and strengthen our position as a trusted voice in medicine and public health.""

"Construction will begin in phases in early 2026. The expansion will allow for the display of more objects, as nearly 500,000 medical instruments, biological specimens, teaching models, texts, and archival materials are not currently on view to the public. This additional space will also allow for new rotating galleries, a larger museum store, and more multi-purpose spaces for educational programs."

The Mütter Museum will merge its current site at 19 South 22nd Street with the adjacent Swedenborgian Church and Parish House at 2129 Chestnut Street, a property purchased for $9.3 million in 2023. An initial fundraising phase has raised $27 million to support creation of a cohesive campus. Phased construction is planned to begin in early 2026 and will expand galleries, rotating exhibits, a larger museum store, and multi-purpose education spaces. The expansion will enable display of more of nearly 500,000 medical instruments, specimens, models, texts, and archival materials not currently on view. The Gothic Revival church was designed by Theophilus Parsons Chandler Jr. and built in 1881 and closed in the mid-1980s.

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