Things to do in and around Philadelphia

Work in Progress 
Here are things to do in Philadelphia. Categorized by types of fun.

Historic
Woodford Mansion- a fancy 18th century mansion with fancier antiques.
Stenton- The Country House of James Logan, William Penn's number two man. The literature for this house seems to indicate that it was built as a place for him to hide from the horrible world.
Bartram's Garden- 18th Century Home of Naturalist John Bartram. Historic architecture and gardens, and also various nature programs like Cider Pressing and Bird Watching..
Independence Hall- Signing place of the Declaration of Independence, surrounded by several other historic sites.

Edgar Allen Poe House- Poe lived here for 18 months when Philadelphia was the American locus of the literati.
Eastern State Penitentiary- A haunted ruin of a prison.
Carpenter's Hall- Home of the first continental congress, displays of all kinds of old furniture and guild stuff.
Dolley Todd House- A fakeout: Dolly Todd was Dolley Todd before she was Dolley Madison.
Bishop White House- Home of Christ Church's rector, reflects upper class living in the 1800's.
Merchant's Exchange Building- This building is mostly (and sadly, and inexplicably) closed, but there is a small visitor's center open during the week.
Germantown White House- Oldest official presidential residence.
Ben Franklin's Grave- RIP.
Old Swedes' Church Pennsylvania's oldest church building.
Thaddeus Kosciuszko House- Home of the Polish freedom fighter who designed American fortifications during the revolutionary war.
Laurel Hill Cemetery- Sculptural garden, horticultural gem, and final resting place of historic luminaries.



Natural
John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge
Valley Green- The nicest park in the city with a cornucopia of hidden wonders.
Riverboat Queen Fleet Paddle Boating- Paddle boating on the Delaware? Oh dear.
Winterthur- DuPont family center of opulence and gardening beauty.
Kelly Drive Loop- Scenic path along the Schuylkill river. 


Museums
American Philosophical Society Museum at Philosophical Hall- APS was founded by Ben Franklin.
Second Bank of the United States Portrait Gallery- featuring a who's who of revolutionary era figures.
National Liberty Museum- A museum of freedom.
Atwater Kent Museum- Exhibits and displays of artifacts depicting the history of the city
Philadelphia Water Works- Historic waterworks and environmental museum. 
Mütter Museum- The College of Physicians of Philadelphia displays medical wonders and oddities.
The Civil War Museum of Philadelphia- Reopens in 2014. If you can't wait until then, visit...
Grand Army of the Republic Museum- to see, among other things, General Meade's heroic horse, "Old Baldy." Or his head, at least. Old Baldy was wounded something like 14 times during the Civil War, and outlived his mount by ten years. More here.
Pizza Brain- Hipster Pizza Museum. That is, a Pizza museum run by hipsters. The hipster pizza museum is here.
Museum of Mourning- Holy souvenir ring w/ lock of George Washington hair!
Anthenaeum- Independent museum/library housed in a nifty national historic building. Rotating exhibits, mostly concerned with decorative arts.

Entertaining


Guided Tours
Philadelphia Ghost Tours

Seasonal
Spring

Summer
Race Street Pier- Nice spot for a nighttime panorama.



Fall
Bates Motel and Haunted Hayride That's a pretty sweet hayride right there.
Terror Behind the Walls- Eastern State Penitentiary is already haunted, and double haunted for Halloween.
Frick's Locks- An abandoned town, good for a post-apocalyptic spooky walk, and real life meetings with ne'er do wells and police with trespassing citations.
Spooky Mini Golf at Franklin Square- Pretty much the same as regular mini golf, but with a fog machine.
Scream Mountain: Spring Mountain is Scream Mountain at night. Only haunted chairlift I've ever heard of.
The Valley of Fear- I don't love going northeast of northeast Philadelphia, and then paying for parking. But this is the second biggest haunted hayride around town.
Sleepy Hollow Hayride- "Active Acres" farm's hayride is like watching a TV show you really liked from 1995... today.
Winter
Ice Skating at the River Rink- Late November to March.

Quick Escapes
Fortescue, NJ- Stay in Rose & Drew Pontz's quiet, seaside B&B: 856-447-4685
Bath, WV