Historic museum closing tomorrow - Philadelphia News

CENTER CITY - July 29, 2008 (WPVI) -- Time is running out to visit a real gem among Philadelphia's museums before it closes for a major overhaul.

It looks like so many Center City townhouses, but 1805 Pine Street is home to an amazing collection of 19th century treasures.

But not for much longer.

The Civil War and Underground Railroad Museum closes this Saturday for a move to Old City.

A 19th-century townhouse makes a great home, but as a museum, it lacks the room to welcome groups and display what it owns. So the doors are closing on Saturday afternoon.

The museum will reopen in 2010 at the First Bank of the United States, at 3rd and Chestnut.

The museum pays tribute to George Meade, the Philadelphia-born general who stopped the Confederates at Gettysburg and to soldiers, white and black, who fought for the Union cause. Tthe museum owns the smoking jacket of Confederate president Jefferson Davis, which many other museums openly covet. So hurry to see it all now, and you'll want to visit again in the new building.

The Civil War and Underground Railroad Museum will be open this Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Then it closes until 2010. The grand reopening is timed to occur just before the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.

The museum was founded by the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, an association of Union Army officers pledged to defend the United States in the decades following the Civil War.

For information, you can phone (215) 735-8196, or access their website. The website will remain up and running during the closure.

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