Mummers Museum

Address:1100 S 2nd St.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Tel: (215) 336-3050

Since 1901 the Mummers Parade has been a splendid Philadelphia tradition. But if you missed the New Year parade (a 10,000 person, all day affair), not to worry, the Mummers Museum displays costumes from parades of the past all year round!

So what exactly are mummers? Imagine glittery costumes with extravagant feathers and sequins. Banjo-strummers, saxophone players, and countless other musical acts, comical routines, and more all march the street in beautiful, often wacky, costumes.

The Mummers Museum, in Philadelphia, holds a large gallery of costumes and presents an interactive history of the Mummers Parade. Visitors can walk on pirate ships, march with Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, or compose their own Mummers medley. Highlights from past parades are shown on a large video screen, so you can re-live, or catch up on, those magical Mummers moments.

Be sure to visit the Mummers Museum Gift Shop where you can find a variety of miniature doll mummers to decorate your home.

To reach the Mummers Museum, ride the I-95 north of I-76. Coming from the south, exit at Riverview Plaza / S Delaware Ave. Make a quick left onto Washington Ave. then another quick left onto South 2nd St. From the north, also exit onto S Delaware Ave. and make a right onto Washington then a left onto South 2nd St.

Mummery is an old tradition in Philadelphia, and the famous Mummers Parade dates back to pre-Colonial times, resulting from a blend of Swedish, Finnish, Irish, English, German, African-American, and other European heritages. With the Mummers in full swing, New Years is celebrated in Philadelphia as it is nowhere else in the world.