EIN 31-1627155

Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP)

IRS 501(c) type
501(c)(3)
Num. employees
404
Year formed
1998
Most recent tax filings
2022-12-01
Description
Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site interprets the legacy of American criminal justice reform, from the nation’s founding through to the present day, within the long-abandoned cellblocks of the nation’s most historic prison.
Also known as...
Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site
Total revenues
$7,711,499
2022
Total expenses
$6,410,141
2022
Total assets
$22,560,132
2022
Num. employees
404
2022

Program areas at ESP

Daytime tour program:esphs offers a variety of daytime Historic tours and exhibits to the public including, but not limited to, audio tours, guided tours, history and historical exhibits and artist installations. Prior to the shutdowns (3/14/2020-8/7/2020 and again 11/16/2020-3/12/2021), these tours were offered seven days a week, twelve months a year. Upon reopening 3/12/2021, esphs reduced its schedule to wednesday through sunday, with added virtual group programming and night tours. On 5/01/2022 esphs returned to the seven days a week operations. Attendance for all the various daytime tours in 2022 was 190,153 compared to 136,776 in 2021. The attendance includes 18,965 from the night tour program.
Exhibits: in 2022 esphs presented a mix of history exhibits and contemporary exhibits focusing on contemporary u.s. prison policy, as well as sixteen art installations. Installations include "the voices of Eastern State audio tour," featuring the voices of 35 people who lived and worked in the prison. Smaller exhibits include al capone's cell, which portrays capone's unusual treatment during his incarceration here, and a restored cell from the 1830s. An exhibit on jewish life adjoins the Penitentiary synagogue, and 23 inmate painted murals are interpreted in the catholic chaplain's office. "prisons today: questions in the age of mass incarceration, and "the big graph" invite reflection on contemporary us prison policy, and connections between the past, the present, and visitors' hopes for the future. An ambitious new artist installation, "dlp mirror" (mark menjivar) was added to the death row cellblock, opened for the first time, in 2022. It brought the number of artist installations to 16. Others include " "deadly weapons" (linda bond) and transient room (ann reichlin), "photo requests from solitary" (solitary watch's jean casella, jeanne oleson and laurie jo reynolds) "doris jean" (rachel livedalen); "apokaluptein:16389067 ii" (jesse krimes'), "chorus" (jess perlitz); "specimen" (greg cowper); "beware the lily law"( michelle handelman); "gtmo" (william cromar); "identity control" (tyler held); "a climber's guide to Eastern State Penitentiary" (alexander rosenberg); and "#blackgirlhood" (dehanza rogers).
Historic preservation:after the last prisoners left Eastern State Penitentiary in 1971, the prison stood for over twenty years, untouched, with no maintenance or care, causing the buildings and structures of this national Historic landmark to fall into a State of severe deterioration. The Site's condition threatened both its structural and educational future, prevented or drastically hindered public tours of the grounds and prohibited interpretation of the Site's place in american history; thus, stabilization and preservation of the entire Site and all of its structures was, and continues to be, of vital importance. Esphs's restoration activities provide visitors with a clear understanding of the prison's history, its design and use, and how the Site changed and evolved over time. In 2022, in addition to the $608,181 of expenses spent on general maintenance, and the allocation of $375,240 of depreciation, esphs completed $164,449 of leasehold improvements. Leasehold improvements included the completion of upgrades to the following areas: perimeter wall stabilization, electrical upgrades including emergency lighting, and other masonry projects.
Merchandise sales and genealogy fees

Who funds Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP)

Grants from foundations and other nonprofits
GrantmakerDescriptionAmount
National Christian Foundation / Natl Christian Charitable FDN IncCulture$945,732
University of the ArtsArts and Cultural Projects$144,000
Meier Family FoundationHistoric Preservation$20,000
...and 12 more grants received

Personnel at ESP

NameTitleCompensation
Kerry SautnerPresident and Chief Executive Officer
Brett BertolinoVice President , Director of Operations$136,500
Matthew D LeeSecretary and Vice Chair$0
David PoniatowskiTreasurer$0
John McInerneyVice Chair and Chair$0
...and 5 more key personnel

Financials for ESP

RevenuesFYE 12/2022
Total grants, contributions, etc.$2,684,747
Program services$3,020,283
Investment income and dividends$41,963
Tax-exempt bond proceeds$0
Royalty revenue$0
Net rental income$0
Net gain from sale of non-inventory assets$0
Net income from fundraising events$1,720,805
Net income from gaming activities$0
Net income from sales of inventory$243,701
Miscellaneous revenues$0
Total revenues$7,711,499

Form 990s for ESP

Fiscal year endingDate received by IRSFormPDF link
2022-122023-10-25990View PDF
2021-122022-10-04990View PDF
2020-122021-09-09990View PDF
2019-122021-02-26990View PDF
2018-122019-10-21990View PDF
...and 9 more Form 990s
Data update history
December 5, 2023
Posted financials
Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2022
December 4, 2023
Updated personnel
Identified 4 new personnel
November 28, 2023
Used new vendors
Identified 1 new vendor, including
October 24, 2023
Received grants
Identified 1 new grant, including a grant for $10,000 from Anne and Philip Glatfelter Iii Family Foundation
August 19, 2023
Received grants
Identified 9 new grant, including a grant for $144,000 from University of the Arts
Nonprofit Types
Arts, culture, and humanities nonprofitsMuseumsCharities
Issues
Arts, cultural, and humanitiesHistoryCriminal justice
Characteristics
MembershipsLobbyingFundraising eventsReceives government fundingTax deductible donations
General information
Address
2027 Fairmount Ave
Philadelphia, PA 19130
Metro area
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
County
Philadelphia County, PA
Website URL
easternstate.org/ 
Phone
(215) 236-3300
Facebook page
Eastern-State-Penitentiary 
Twitter profile
@easternstate 
IRS details
EIN
31-1627155
Fiscal year end
December
Taxreturn type
Form 990
Year formed
1998
Eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions (Pub 78)
Yes
Categorization
NTEE code, primary
A80: Historical Societies, Historical Preservation
NAICS code, primary
7121: Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions
Parent/child status
Independent
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