Curious Histories Fest
Curious Histories Fest is the Science History Institute’s annual celebration of science, history, exploration, and experimentation.
Curious Histories Fest 2025: What’s for Lunch?
Inspired by our current exhibition Lunchtime: The History of Science on the School Food Tray, our third annual festival was held on Saturday, June 14, 2025. Curious Histories Fest: What’s for Lunch? explored the history of food science and efforts to feed children in U.S. schools.
Activity Highlights
- Tastes and smells with the Society of Flavor Chemists and Monell Chemical Senses Center
- Cooking demos and delicious recipe samplings with Vetri Mobile Teaching Kitchen
- Double Dutch with Philly Girls Jump in our “recess yard”
- Live music by Vinyl Tap 215 founder DJ DuiJi Mshinda
- Favorite school lunch memory sharing with our Distillations podcast team
- Pickle tastings with Fishtown Pickle Project
- Tap water education and tasting with the Philadelphia Water Department’s Philly Water Bar
- Introduction to sustainable composting with Bennett Compost
- Learn about Rebel Ventures, a group of student entrepreneurs based in West Philly who create healthy food for school kids
- Live pickling demonstration by Spotted Horse Provisions and tastings of their jams, shrubs, and pickled veggies
- Plant-based Peruvian food tastings with La Llamita Vegana
- Interactive pop-up displays from our special collections, from vintage coolers to Saran Wrap
- Food-themed board games
- Other school lunch-inspired food tastings including ice cream!
Major funding for Curious Histories Fest is provided by the Bolte Family Foundation, with additional support from the American Chemical Society and Trinseo. Major support for Lunchtime has been provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.
Curious Histories Fest 2024: Color Your World
Inspired by our BOLD: Color from Test Tube to Textile exhibition, our second annual festival was held on Saturday, June 8, 2024.
A record-setting 536 guests enjoyed family activities, hands-on crafts, engaging talks, and live dyeing demos. Our museum featured special collections showcasing strange and wondrous color and dye histories. The day also included food trucks, special guests, and live music.
Curious Histories Fest 2023: A Taste of Water
The theme of our inaugural festival, “A Taste of Water,” featured a daylong celebration of the water in your world. Held on Saturday, June 10, 2023, more than 350 visitors enjoyed free hands-on activities and family-friendly fun, as well as exciting talks, tours, and highlights from our special collections.