Due to exhibition construction, the museum is temporarily closed.
Our First Friday event has been rescheduled to March 13.

This touch-based tour offers guests a private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects from our collections.

The tour begins with an introduction to natural fibers, such as wool and linen, and moves on to the development of plastics and synthetic materials like nylon and Gore-Tex. Guests will leave with a better understanding of how these fibers changed our world and how the changing world influenced our desire for high-tech textiles.

Our Touch Tours are specifically designed to engage with guests who are blind and visually impaired. We also strive to be inclusive for all visitors with various abilities. Please communicate your accessibility needs at signup or reach out to us.


If you have any questions or would like to pay cash for the tour, email tours@sciencehistory.org or call 215.925.2222.

More events

illustrated note about a frog
March 9, 2026
Science on Tap

What Frogs and Octopuses Know (That ChatGPT Doesn’t)

Won Jeon shows how AI produces convincing language while lacking the situational awareness that powers the communication of living organisms.

Museum educator Laura Prewitt speaks out the nylon exhibit with a man who using a white cane.
March 10, 2026
Museum Programs & Activities

From Nature to Nylons: A Touch-Based History of Textiles

This touch-based tour offers guests a private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects from our collections.

Research fellow Eva Hemmungs Wirtén.
March 11, 2026
Free

Othmer Library Tour

Curious about the other half of the Science History Institute? Step into the Othmer Library of Chemical History!

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