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Philadelphia Convention Hall and Civic Center

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The Philadelphia Convention Hall and Civic Center , commonly known simply as the Philadelphia Civic Center , was a convention center complex located in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania . It developed out of a series of buildings dedicated to expanding trade which began with the National Export Exhibition in 1899. The two most significant buildings in the complex were the original main exhibition hall built in 1899, which later housed the Philadelphia Commercial Museum , and the Municipal Auditorium, later called the Convention Hall, which was built in 1931 to the designs of architect Philip H. Johnson. The site was host to national political conventions in 1900, 1936, 1940 and 1948.

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62-583: The Convention Hall arena was located at 3400 Civic Center Boulevard, on the edge of the campus of the University of Pennsylvania , and just to the southwest of Franklin Field . It was built in 1930 and its highest capacity was approximately 12,000. The building was an Art Deco landmark, notable for its many friezes and other decorative aspects. Originally known as the Municipal Auditorium,

124-444: A 1959 Philadelphia ordinance requiring total budget for new construction or major renovation projects in which governmental resources are used to include 1% for art to be used to pay for installation of site-specific public art, in part because many alumni collected and donated art to Penn, and in part because of the presence of the University of Pennsylvania School of Design on the campus. In 2020, Penn installed Brick House ,

186-540: A 9,500-ton chiller module and corresponding extension of the campus chilled water loop, and a 4,000-ton ice storage facility. In 2010, in its first significant expansion across the Schuylkill River , Penn purchased 23 acres (9.3 ha) at the northwest corner of 34th Street and Grays Ferry Avenue, the then site of DuPont 's Marshall Research Labs. In October 2016, with help from architects Matthias Hollwich , Marc Kushner , and KSS Architects , Penn completed

248-431: A clay house. At the installation, Penn president Amy Guttman proclaimed that "Ms. Leigh's sculpture brings a striking presence of strength, grace, and beauty—along with an ineffable sense of mystery and resilience—to a central crossroad of Penn's campus." The Covenant , known to the student body as "Dueling Tampons" or "The Tampons," is a large red structure created by Alexander Liberman and located on Locust Walk as

310-790: A degree from the College of Arts and Sciences and a degree from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Also, the Vagelos Scholars Program in Molecular Life Sciences allows its students to either double major in the sciences or submatriculate and earn both a BA and an MS in four years. The most recent Vagelos Integrated Program in Energy Research (VIPER) was first offered for the class of 2016. A joint program of Penn's School of Arts and Sciences and

372-553: A gateway to the high-rise residences "super block." It was installed in 1975 and is made of rolled sheets of milled steel. A white button, known as The Button and officially called the Split Button is a modern art sculpture designed by designed by Swedish sculptor Claes Oldenburg (who specialized in creating oversize sculptures of everyday objects). It sits at the south entrance of Van Pelt Library and has button holes large enough for people to stand inside. Penn also has

434-603: A large upscale grocery store, and a movie theater on the western edge of campus. Penn's core campus borders Drexel University and is a few blocks from the University City campus of Saint Joseph's University , which absorbed University of the Sciences in Philadelphia in a merger, and The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College . Wistar Institute , a cancer research center, is also located on campus. In 2014,

496-467: A monumental work of art, created by Simone Leigh at the College Green gateway to Penn's campus near the corner of 34th Street and Woodland Walk. This 5,900-pound (2,700 kg) bronze sculpture, which is 16 feet (4.9 m) high and 9 feet (2.7 m) in diameter at its base, depicts an African woman's head crowned with an afro framed by cornrow braids atop a form that resembles both a skirt and

558-632: A nearby 24-acre (9.7 ha) site then owned by the United States Postal Service . Dubbed the Postal Lands, the site extends from Market Street on the north to Penn's Bower Field on the south, including the former main regional U.S. Postal Building at 30th and Market Streets, now the regional office for the U.S. Internal Revenue Service . Over the next decade, the site became the home to educational, research, biomedical , and mixed-use facilities. The first phase, comprising

620-514: A new seven-story glass and steel building was completed next to the institute's original brick edifice built in 1897 further expanding collaboration between the university and the Wistar Institute. The Module 6 Utility Plant and Garage at Penn was designed by BLT Architects and completed in 1995. Module 6 is located at 38th and Walnut and includes spaces for 627 vehicles, 9,000 sq ft (840 m ) of storefront retail operations,

682-490: A park and athletic facilities, opened in the fall of 2011. In September 2011, Penn completed the construction of the $ 46.5 million, 24-acre (9.7 ha) Penn Park, which features passive and active recreation and athletic components framed and subdivided by canopy trees, lawns, and meadows. It is located east of the Highline Green and stretches from Walnut to South Streets . Penn maintains two arboreta. The first,

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744-477: A place for academics, researchers, and entrepreneurs to establish their businesses in close proximity to each other to facilitate cross-pollination of their ideas, creativity, and innovation," according to a March 2017 university statement. In 2007, Penn acquired about 35 acres (14 ha) between the campus and the Schuylkill River at the former site of the Philadelphia Civic Center and

806-524: A replica of the Love sculpture, part of a series created by Robert Indiana . It is a painted aluminum sculpture and was installed in 1998 overlooking College Green. In 2019, the Association for Public Art loaned Penn two multi-ton sculptures. The works are Social Consciousness , created by Sir Jacob Epstein in 1954, and Atmosphere and Environment XII , created by Louise Nevelson in 1970. Until

868-591: A student's GPA to be a very important academic factor, with emphasis on an applicant's high school class rank and letters of recommendation. Admission is need-blind for U.S., Canadian, and Mexican applicants. For the class of 2026, entering in Fall 2022, the university received 54,588 applications. The Atlantic also ranked Penn among the 10 most selective schools in the country. At the graduate level, based on admission statistics from U.S. News & World Report , Penn's most selective programs include its law school,

930-680: Is challenged by other universities since Franklin first convened the board of trustees in 1749, arguably making it the fifth-oldest. The university has four undergraduate schools and 12 graduate and professional schools. Schools enrolling undergraduates include the College of Arts and Sciences , the School of Engineering and Applied Science , the Wharton School , and the School of Nursing . Among its graduate schools are its law school , whose first professor James Wilson participated in writing

992-518: Is one of nine colonial colleges and was chartered prior to the U.S. Declaration of Independence when Benjamin Franklin , the university's founder and first president, advocated for an educational institution that trained leaders in academia, commerce, and public service . Penn identifies as the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States , though this representation

1054-601: Is the fine arts unit of the University of Oklahoma in Norman . The college produces nearly 300 concerts, recitals , dramas, musicals , operas and dance performances each year. The college occupies several buildings on campus including the Museum of Art , Rupel J. Jones Fine Arts Center, Donald W. Reynolds Center for the Performing Arts, and Catlett Music Center. Started in 1924 (the fourth-oldest of OU's colleges),

1116-803: Is the undergraduate division of the School of Arts and Sciences . The School of Arts and Sciences also contains the Graduate Division and the College of Liberal and Professional Studies , which is home to the Fels Institute of Government , the master's programs in Organizational Dynamics, and the Environmental Studies (MES) program. Wharton School is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania. Other schools with undergraduate programs include

1178-464: The Beaux-Arts building include a rotunda and gardens that include Egyptian papyrus . Penn maintains a website providing a detailed roadmap to small museums and galleries and over one hundred locations across campus where the public can access Penn's over 8,000 artworks acquired over 250 years, which includes paintings, sculptures, photography, works on paper, and decorative arts. The largest of

1240-553: The College of Philadelphia was chartered, paving the way for the addition of undergraduate instruction. Much of Penn's current architecture was designed by the Philadelphia -based architecture firm Cope and Stewardson , whose owners were Philadelphia born and raised architects and professors at Penn who also designed Princeton University and a large part of Washington University in St. Louis . They were known for having combined

1302-659: The Gothic architecture of the University of Oxford and University of Cambridge with the local landscape to establish the Collegiate Gothic style. The present core campus covers over 299 acres (121 ha) in a contiguous area of West Philadelphia's University City section, and the older heart of the campus comprises the University of Pennsylvania Campus Historic District . All of Penn's schools and most of its research institutes are located on this campus. The surrounding neighborhood includes several restaurants, bars,

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1364-844: The Penn Quakers , fields varsity teams in 33 sports as a member of NCAA Division I's Ivy League conference. Penn alumni, trustees, and faculty include eight Founding Fathers of the United States who signed the Declaration of Independence , seven who signed the United States Constitution , 24 members of the Continental Congress , three presidents of the United States , 38 Nobel laureates, nine foreign heads of state , three United States Supreme Court justices, at least four Supreme Court justices of foreign nations, 32 U.S. senators , 163 members of

1426-563: The Pennsylvania Convention Center in the city's central business district); prior to this, it also hosted college basketball in the form of the 1986 MEAC men's basketball tournament . Afterwards, it served as a soundstage for movies and the TV series Hack starring David Morse . The championship fight scenes in the 1990 movie Rocky V was shot there. The Auditorium's M.P. Moller 86-rank pipe organ , built in 1931,

1488-508: The Preakness Stakes . Penn library system has grown into a system of 14 libraries with 400 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees and a total operating budget of more than $ 48 million. The library system has 6.19 million book and serial volumes as well as 4.23 million microform items and 1.11 million e-books. It subscribes to over 68,000 print serials and e-journals. The university has 15 libraries. Van Pelt Library on

1550-478: The School of Nursing and the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) . The current president is J. Larry Jameson (interim). The University of Pennsylvania Police Department (UPPD) is the largest, private police department in Pennsylvania, with 117 members. All officers are sworn municipal police officers and retain general law enforcement authority while on the campus. The official seal of

1612-570: The Spectrum opened in 1967, the Civic Center continued on as an alternate venue to the larger arena for events requiring less seating or overall space. On February 5, 1970, The Jackson 5 played their first official concert for Motown Records there. The building was later used for Atlantic 10 Conference and Big Five basketball games. Jim Crockett Promotions , under the NWA banner, and later

1674-592: The Ted Turner -owned WCW , also staged professional wrestling there, which included three pay-per-view events: Halloween Havoc in 1989 and 1992 and the 1994 Slamboree event. The Civic Center also hosted the World Hockey Association 's Philadelphia Blazers and the minor-league Philadelphia Firebirds hockey teams. The University of Pennsylvania used the building for commencements (due to it being larger than Penn's own basketball arena,

1736-402: The U.S. House of Representatives , 19 U.S. Cabinet Secretaries , 46 governors , 28 State Supreme Court justices, 36 living undergraduate billionaires (the largest number of any U.S. college or university), and five Medal of Honor recipients. In 1740, a group of Philadelphians organized to erect a great preaching hall for George Whitefield , a traveling Anglican evangelist , which

1798-603: The rest of the Thirteen Colonies . Since the Penn Museum was founded in 1887, it has taken part in 400 research projects worldwide. The museum's first project was an excavation of Nippur , a location in current day Iraq. Penn Museum is home to the largest authentic sphinx in North America at about seven feet high, four feet wide, 13 feet long, 12.9 tons, and made of solid red granite. The sphinx

1860-624: The Institute for Research in Cognitive Science. The University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice , commonly known as Penn SP2, is a school of social policy and social work that offers degrees in a variety of subfields, in addition to several dual degree programs and sub-matriculation programs. Penn SP2's vision is: "The passionate pursuit of social innovation, impact and justice ." American Organ Institute The Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts

1922-777: The Middle East, Mesoamerica , Asia, the Mediterranean, Africa and indigenous artifacts of the Americas. Its most famous object is the goat rearing into the branches of a rosette-leafed plant, from the royal tombs of Ur . The Penn Museum's excavations and collections foster a strong research base for graduate students in the Graduate Group in the Art and Archaeology of the Mediterranean World . Features of

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1984-473: The Penn campus is the university's main library. The other 14 are: Penn also maintains books and records off campus at high density storage facility. The Penn Design School 's Fine Arts Library was built to be Penn's main library and the first with its own building. The main library at the time was designed by Frank Furness to be first library in nation to separate the low ceilings of the library stack , where

2046-575: The School of Engineering and Applied Science, VIPER leads to dual Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science in Engineering degrees by combining majors from each school. For graduate programs, Penn offers many formalized double degree graduate degrees such as a joint J.D./MBA and maintains a list of interdisciplinary institutions, such as the Institute for Medicine and Engineering, the Joseph H. Lauder Institute for Management and International Studies, and

2108-512: The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania serves as the signature and symbol of authenticity on documents issued by the corporation. The most recent design, a modified version of the original seal, was approved in 1932, adopted a year later and is still used for much of the same purposes as the original. The official seal of the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania serves as the signature and symbol of authenticity on documents issued by

2170-554: The arena hosted many events, including the 1936 and 1948 Democratic National Conventions , and the 1940 and 1948 Republican National Conventions . Thus the building became known as Convention Hall. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke there, and The Beatles , The Grateful Dead and the Philadelphia Mummers each performed there. The Philadelphia Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers both played many of their games in

2232-641: The arena; the 1960 NBA All-Star Game was played there. President Lyndon B. Johnson spoke at a campaign appearance on October 29, 1964, at Convention Hall. He appeared at the Hall alongside many notable Philadelphia and Pennsylvania Democratic leaders. Four days later, The Beatles played the venue on September 2, 1964, during their first tour of the United States. Tickets went on sale in May 1964 and sold out within 90 minutes. The Rolling Stones played Convention Hall on May 1, 1965, during their third American tour . After

2294-641: The art galleries is the Institute of Contemporary Art , one of the only kunsthalles in the country, which showcases various art exhibitions throughout the year. Since 1983, the Arthur Ross Gallery , located at the Fisher Fine Arts Library , has housed Penn's art collection and is named for its benefactor, philanthropist Arthur Ross . Every College House at the University of Pennsylvania has at least four members of faculty in

2356-526: The books and the outer ring is the Latin motto of the university, "Leges Sine Moribus Vanae." Penn's "One University Policy" allows students to enroll in classes in any of Penn's twelve schools. Penn has a strong focus on interdisciplinary learning and research. It offers double degree programs, unique majors, and academic flexibility. Penn's "One University" policy allows undergraduates access to courses at all of Penn's undergraduate and graduate schools except

2418-445: The books were stored, from forty-foot-plus high ceilinged rooms, where the books were read and studied. The Yarnall Library of Theology, a major American rare book collection, is part of Penn's libraries. The Yarnall Library of Theology was formerly affiliated with St. Clement's Church in Philadelphia. It was founded in 1911 under the terms of the wills of Ellis Hornor Yarnall (1839–1907) and Emily Yarnall, and subsequently housed at

2480-425: The contemporary art, Penn also has several traditional statues, including a good number created by Penn's first Director of Physical Education Department, R. Tait McKenzie . Among the notable sculptures is that of Young Ben Franklin , which McKenzie produced and Penn sited adjacent to the fieldhouse contiguous to Franklin Field . The sculpture is titled Benjamin Franklin in 1723 and was created by McKenzie during

2542-460: The corporation. A request for one was first recorded in a meeting of the trustees in 1753 during which some of the Trustees "desired to get a Common Seal engraved for the Use of [the] Corporation." In 1756, a public seal and motto for the college was engraved in silver. The most recent design, a modified version of the original seal, was approved in 1932, adopted a year later and is still used for much of

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2604-445: The design and renovation of the center piece of the project, a former paint factory named Pennovation Works , which houses shared desks, wet labs, common areas, a pitch bleacher, and other attributes of a tech incubator. The rest of the site, known as South Bank, is a mixture of lightly refurbished industrial buildings that serve as affordable and flexible workspaces and land for future development. Penn hopes that "South Bank will provide

2666-571: The first draft of the U.S. Constitution , its medical school , which was the first medical school established in North America, and the Wharton School, the nation's first collegiate business school. In 2023, Penn ranked third among U.S. universities in research expenditures , according to the National Science Foundation . Its endowment is $ 21 billion, making it the sixth-wealthiest private academic institution in

2728-562: The former Philadelphia Divinity School. The library's major areas of focus are theology, patristics, and the liturgy, history and theology of the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church in the United States of America . It includes a large number of rare books, incunabula, and illuminated manuscripts, and new material continues to be added. The campus has more than 40 notable art installations, in part because of

2790-511: The health care schools (medicine, dental medicine, nursing, veterinary), the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the Wharton School. Penn offers unique and specialized coordinated dual-degree (CDD) programs, which selectively award candidates degrees from multiple schools at the university upon completion of graduation criteria of both schools in addition to program-specific programs and senior capstone projects. Additionally, there are accelerated and interdisciplinary programs offered by

2852-628: The loan, both works had been located at the West Entrance to the Philadelphia Museum of Art , the older since its creation and the Nevelson work since 1973. Social Consciousness was relocated to the walkway between Wharton's Lippincott Library and Phi Phi chapter of Alpha Chi Rho fraternity house, and Atmosphere and Environment XII is sited on Shoemaker Green between Franklin Field and Ringe Squash Courts. In addition to

2914-475: The medical, veterinary and dental schools. Undergraduates at Penn may also take courses at Bryn Mawr , Haverford , and Swarthmore under a reciprocal agreement known as the Quaker Consortium . * SAT and ACT ranges are from the 25th to the 75th percentile. Undergraduate admissions to the University of Pennsylvania is considered by US News to be "most selective." Admissions officials consider

2976-545: The nation as of 2023. The University of Pennsylvania's main campus is located in the University City neighborhood of West Philadelphia , and is centered around College Hall . Notable campus landmarks include Houston Hall , the first modern student union , and Franklin Field , the nation's first dual-level college football stadium and the nation's longest-standing NCAA Division I college football stadium in continuous operation. The university's athletics program,

3038-406: The nearby Palestra ), as did Drexel University , Temple University , St. Joseph's University, and La Salle University . Pope John Paul II and Nelson Mandela both spoke there. Convention Hall was torn down in 2005, after more than a decade without a regular tenant. The 1996 Atlantic 10 Men's basketball tournament was the last event ever held there (its convention functions were taken over by

3100-649: The official arboretum of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , is 92 acres and includes over 13,000 labelled plants from over 2,500 types, representing the temperate floras of North America , Asia , and Europe , with a primary focus on Asia. Penn also owns the 687-acre (278 ha) New Bolton Center , the research and large-animal health care center of its veterinary school. Located near Kennett Square , New Bolton Center received nationwide media attention when Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro underwent surgery at its Widener Hospital for injuries suffered while running in

3162-501: The pre-World War I era (1910–1914). Other sculptures he produced for Penn include the 1924 sculpture of then Penn provost Edgar Fahs Smith . Penn is presently reevaluating all of its public art and has formed a working group led by Penn Design dean Frederick Steiner , who was part of a similar effort at the University of Texas at Austin that led to the removal of statues of Jefferson Davis and other Confederate officials, and Penn's Chief Diversity Officer, Joann Mitchell. Penn has begun

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3224-555: The process of adding art and removing or relocating art. Penn removed from campus in 2020 the statue of the Reverend George Whitefield (who had inspired the 1740 establishment of a trust to establish a charity school, which trust Penn legally assumed in 1749) when research showed Whitefield owned fifty enslaved people and drafted and advocated for the key theological arguments in favor of slavery in Georgia and

3286-708: The roles of House Dean, Faculty Master, and College House Fellows. Within the College Houses, Penn has nearly 40 themed residential programs for students with shared interests such as world cinema or science and technology. Many of the nearby homes and apartments in the area surrounding the campus are often rented by undergraduate students moving off campus after their first year, as well as by graduate and professional students. The College Houses include W.E.B. Du Bois, Fisher Hassenfeld, Gregory, Gutmann, Harnwell, Harrison, Hill College House , Kings Court English, Lauder, Riepe, Rodin, Stouffer, and Ware. The first College House

3348-637: The roughly 300-acre (120 ha) Penn Campus Arboretum at the University of Pennsylvania, encompasses the entire University City main campus. The campus arboretum is an urban forest with over 6,500 trees representing 240 species of trees and shrubs, ten specialty gardens and five urban parks, which has been designated as a Tree Campus USA since 2009 and formally recognized as an accredited ArbNet Arboretum since 2017. Penn maintains an interactive website linked to Penn's comprehensive tree inventory, which allows users to explore Penn's entire collection of trees. The second arboretum, Morris Arboretum , which serves as

3410-432: The same purposes as the original. The outer ring of the current seal is inscribed with "Universitas Pennsylvaniensis," the Latin name of the University of Pennsylvania. The inside contains seven stacked books on a desk with the titles of subjects of the trivium and a modified quadrivium , components of a classical education: Theolog[ia], Astronom[ia], Philosoph[ia], Mathemat[ica], Logica, Rhetorica and Grammatica. Between

3472-499: The university. These undergraduate programs include: Dual-degree programs that lead to the same multiple degrees without participation in the specific above programs are also available. Unlike CDD programs, "dual degree" students fulfill requirements of both programs independently without the involvement of another program. Specialized dual-degree programs include Liberal Studies and Technology as well as an Artificial Intelligence: Computer and Cognitive Science Program. Both programs award

3534-613: Was Van Pelt College House, established in the fall of 1971. It was later renamed Gregory House. Fisher Hassenfeld, Ware and Riepe together make up one building called "The Quad." The latest College House to be built is Guttman (formerly named New College House West), which opened in the fall of 2021. Penn students in Junior or Senior year may live in the 45 sororities and fraternities governed by three student-run governing councils, Interfraternity Council, Intercultural Greek Council, and Panhellenic Council. The College of Arts and Sciences

3596-537: Was demolished. It was purchased by the Alessi Organization in 2005 and in 2017 was installed outside its new Crossing Shopping Center at East 22nd Street and Route 440 in Bayonne, New Jersey . University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (commonly known as Penn or UPenn ) is a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania, United States. It

3658-559: Was designed and constructed by Edmund Woolley . It was the largest building in Philadelphia at the time, and thousands of people attended it to hear Whitefield preach. In the fall of 1749, Benjamin Franklin , a Founding Father and polymath in Philadelphia, circulated a pamphlet, " Proposals Relating to the Education of Youth in Pensilvania ," his vision for what he called a "Public Academy of Philadelphia". On June 16, 1755,

3720-560: Was discovered in 1912 by the British archeologist, Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie , during an excavation of the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis, Egypt , where the sphinx had guarded a temple to ward off evil. Since Petri's expedition was partially financed by Penn Petrie offered it to Penn, which arranged for it to be moved to museum in 1913. The sphinx was moved in 2019 to a more prominent spot intended to attract visitors. The museum has three gallery floors with artifacts from Egypt ,

3782-457: Was imploded on March 4, 2007. The University of Pennsylvania Health System 's Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine opened on the site in October 2008. One limestone frieze that adorned the Civic Center, 5 feet (1.5 m) tall and 48 feet (15 m) long and depicting the history of labor from the days of the ancient Egyptians to the 20th century, was carefully removed before the building

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3844-537: Was removed just prior to the building's demolition and placed in Pennsylvania Hall in temporary storage. In October 2006 the organ was donated to the University of Oklahoma's American Organ Institute where it was partially installed into the Sharp Hall. The Institute however was disbanded in 2019 and the uninstalled pipework sold. The last remnant of the Civic Center, Pennsylvania Hall (built in 1978),

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