The city owns the collection of about 130,000 objects, while Drexel is expected to continue caring for, displaying and lending the artifacts. The transfer agreement was never signed. Under the revised arrangement, the collection would be overseen by trustees drawn from the former board of the Atwater Kent museum, rather than by Drexel as trustee.

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker pushed for the change after taking office in 2024, according to a joint statement from the city and Drexel. “The history of Philadelphia belongs to Philadelphians,” Parker said in the statement, adding that she directed her team to keep the city’s cultural holdings in public ownership.

City cultural chief Val Gay said Philadelphia has made a multiyear financial commitment that exceeds its previous contractual support for Drexel. The city has not disclosed the amount, pending completion of the agreement. Jeffry Benoliel, vice president of the museum trustees, welcomed the plan but said its durability will depend on sustained support from both the mayor’s office and City Council.

The new agreement does not reopen a Philadelphia history museum. The Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent closed in 2018 after years of declining support, and its former home at 15 S. Seventh St. remains closed.

The collection includes a wampum belt given to William Penn by the Lenape in 1682, George Washington’s mahogany desk, objects from Philadelphia’s industrial history and the 1876 Centennial Exposition, sports memorabilia, and works by artists including Charles Willson Peale, Benjamin West and Thomas Sully. Inventor and radio manufacturer A. Atwater Kent donated the museum building, which opened in 1941.

Since beginning work on the collection, Drexel has digitized about 20,000 items. Hundreds have been shown or lent to exhibitions, including more than 600 objects in “Philadelphia Revealed: Unpacking the Attic,” presented at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 2024 and 2025. A free exhibition at the National Constitution Center currently features 29 items, 16 from the Atwater Kent holdings.

Drexel’s senior vice provost for libraries, collections and archives, Rosalind Remer, said the university’s work has brought in about $2.7 million in grants through September 2026 and nearly $740,000 in donations through December 2025. An endowment campaign has raised $637,500 toward a $2 million goal.

Remer said the change in ownership was not driven by Drexel’s finances. The city pays for storage at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, while Drexel provides staff time and raises outside funding for programs and exhibitions.

The previous transfer had already received court approval, and what legal process may now be needed remains unclear. Drexel said it would not speculate on any future court proceedings. The city and university described the agreement as being in its final stages, but its precise terms have not been released.

Historians and cultural leaders say keeping ownership public is important, while also emphasizing that stewardship requires long-term funding, staffing and sound governance. Francis W. Hoeber, an independent Philadelphia historian who opposed transferring the collection, said the objects belong to the city’s people. He continues to support creating a museum dedicated to Philadelphia history—a goal the new arrangement does not address.