History on the Street: Free Philadelphia festival brings history to life for students

For Philadelphia students, history doesn’t have to stay on the page.

This weekend, they’ll have a chance to step into the role of historians themselves — digging into the past, examining primary sources and discovering how the stories of Philadelphia and the nation can be understood from different perspectives.

On Saturday, Aug. 29, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and National History Day Philadelphia will host History on the Street: Back to School Edition, a free street festival on the 1300 block of Locust Street. The event will bring together 27 museums, archives, universities, cultural institutions and community organizations for an afternoon of student projects, hands-on activities, music, food and discovery.

The event offers students, teachers and families an introduction to National History Day Philadelphia, a program spearheaded by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania that gives Philadelphia students the opportunity to conduct original historical research at no cost to them or their schools.

For more than 25 years, the program has awarded more than $120,000 in scholarships and directed approximately $3 million in resources to Philadelphia schools.

Each year, National History Day Philadelphia selects more than three dozen projects from its city competition to advance to the Pennsylvania National History Day state finals. Students who are selected at the state level go on to represent Pennsylvania at the national competition in Washington, D.C.

The opportunity is part of a national program that attracts more than 500,000 students each year.

“National History Day gives students the opportunity to explore those questions for themselves, digging into primary sources, weighing different perspectives, and developing conclusions grounded in evidence,” said Katie Clark, HSP’s National History Day Philadelphia Coordinator. “At a time when history is part of so many public conversations, those are incredibly valuable  skills for young people to develop.” 

Becoming the historian

The event will offer students, teachers, and families an introduction to National History Day Philadelphia, and students in grades 6-12 will have the opportunity to become historians themselves. Students choose a topic connected to an annual theme, then conduct research, analyze evidence, develop their own interpretations of what’s in front of them, and present their findings through a documentary, exhibit, paper, performance, or website.

At this year’s History on the Street event, student historians from the 2026 National History Day Philadelphia competition will showcase projects created around the theme “Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History,” selected in anticipation of the nation’s 250th anniversary.

History beyond the classroom

During the afternoon, participating organizations will introduce students and families to resources available for exploring history not just locally in Philadelphia, but beyond the city as well.

Participating organizations include the American Philosophical Society, Museum of the American Revolution, National Constitution Center, Science History Institute, Drexel University Legacy Center Archives and Special Collections College of Medicine, the University of Pennsylvania’s Kislak Center for Special Collections, and more.

Inside the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, visitors can also explore a pop-up display featuring materials from the Society’s collections related to local Black history.

Inside the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, visitors can also explore a pop-up display featuring materials from the Society’s collections related to local Black history.

The afternoon will include food from Tio Abi’s Kitchen and a neighborhood Halal cart, along with music from Kuhren the Selector.

Looking ahead

The event also offers students a preview of what’s ahead for National History Day.

The 2027 theme will be “Innovation in History: Impact, Influence, Change.” Students will explore how innovations — from inventions and technologies to new ideas and ways of thinking — have influenced people and societies and changed the course of history.

History on the Street: Back to School Edition is free and open to the public and takes place Saturday, Aug. 29, from noon to 4 p.m. on the 1300 block of Locust Street. For more information, visit hsp.org.

MORE: Preserving a legacy: UArts archives find a new home at HSP

Keywords

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