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Revolution Museum exceeds fund-raising goal and ends building campaign

The museum raised $165 million for building and endowment.

Color Guards of each of the original colonies march around the front of the Museum of the American Revolution as Michael Quinn, the president and CEO of the museum, welcomes everyone to the opening on  April 19, 2017.  MICHAEL BRYANT / Staff Photographer
Color Guards of each of the original colonies march around the front of the Museum of the American Revolution as Michael Quinn, the president and CEO of the museum, welcomes everyone to the opening on April 19, 2017. MICHAEL BRYANT / Staff PhotographerRead moreMICHAEL BRYANT / Staff Photographer

The Museum of the American Revolution, which opened its redbrick building in April at Third and Chestnut Streets, has formally concluded its building campaign, having raised $165 million, 10 percent above its $150 million goal.

"We've received an outpouring of support and have not just reached but far exceeded our goal," said former Gov. Edward G. Rendell, chair of the campaign committee.  "As a result, we've been able to create a truly exceptional national museum that tells the inspiring history of the creation of our nation."

So far, museum attendance has been good, said officials, with more than 250,000 (including 30,000 schoolchildren) visiting in a little more than nine months.

The museum's capital campaign, which began in 2010, included $120 million for construction, $5 million for an operating reserve, and $25 million for an endowment. The museum opened under budget and debt-free, officials said.

Major gifts to the campaign include $50 million in matching grants from H. F. "Gerry" Lenfest and his wife, Marguerite, $30 million from the state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, and $10 million from the Oneida Indian Nation.

Officials said more than 19,000 individuals from every state in the union contributed to the campaign.

Museum board chair Gen. John P. Jumper singled out Lenfest for his unflagging support of the museum.

"We and the nation are indebted to Gerry Lenfest, whose unwavering leadership and unmatched generosity during his 11 years as chair of the museum transformed the dream of the museum into reality," Jumper said.