Museums Even a Teenager Will Love - 2

History lovers may (or may not) appreciate seeing a cancerous growth removed from President Grover Cleveland, gallstones removed from Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall and the thorax of President Lincoln’s assassin, John Wilkes Booth. Goth teens will enjoy the collection of 139 skulls amassed by a Viennese anatomist. There’s a collection of 2,000 items non-surgically removed from people’s throats including coins, a wedding ring, safety pins and a toy boat. Squeamish parents won’t enjoy the museum, but it’s a small price to pay for one day being able to tell your competitive neighbors that your kid’s a doctor. Noted celebrity visitors include, rather unsurprisingly, Robert Downey Jr. and Marilyn Manson.

Contact info: 19 South Twenty-Second Street, Philadelphia, PA; 215-563-3737; www.collphyphil.org; Hours: Monday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. (except Friday, open till 9 p.m.). Closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas and New Year’s Day; Admission: adults 18-64, $12; children 6-17, seniors (65+) and students with valid ID, $8; children under 6, free. ”

The Sing Sing Prison Museum, Ossining, N.Y.

At first glance, Ossining looks like s a typical historic village, but first impressions can be deceiving. Originally named Sing Sing (after the Sint Sinck Indians,) Ossining also is home to one of the country’s most notorious prisons as well as The Sing Sing Prison Museum. There’s talk of building a larger museum within the prison walls, but for now visitors can content themselves with the exhibit set up in the Joseph G. Caputo Community Center. For a small museum, it’s extremely comprehensive and covers the histories of prison reform, prisoner treatment, methods of execution and daily prison life. There’s a chilling replica built by prisoners in the Building Maintenance Vocational Class of 1991 of Sing Sing’s infamous electric chair. (The original chair was used in 614 prisoner executions over its lengthy career from 1914 to 1963. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were among its victims.)

There are two actual prison cells on display, but floor-to-ceiling mirrors create the illusion that they’re an entire cellblock. The cells are open for teens (or darkly humorous adults) that want a unique photo for their holiday cards. Recorded prison sounds play in the background. A mounted display shows “homemade” weapons confiscated from prisoners (some still in plastic bags marked “evidence”). Visitors who haven’t had their fill of Sing Sing can stop by the Ossining Historical Society, which also has a collection of prison memorabilia. Those who know all they want to about prison can take in a neighboring exhibit on the Old Croton Aqueduct, which brought clean water to New York City from 1842 to 1991. By prior arrangement, visitors can actually go into the aqueduct chamber. 

Contact info: Ossining Community Center; 95 Broadway, Ossining, N.Y., 914-941-941-3189; Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m; Admission: Free

Ossining Historical Society Museum,196 Croton Ave., Ossining, N.Y.; 914-941-0001; Hours: Sunday-Thursday 1 p.m.-4p.m., and by appointment; www.ossininghistorical.org.

To visit the aqueduct, contact the Friends of the Old Croton Aqueduct, 914-693-4117; www.aqueduct.org