Samuel Simeon Fels

An active philanthropist, Fels helped to establish the Committee of Seventy in 1904, for political reform in Philadelphia. The city was often portrayed in the popular press of the time as "a city mired in corruption".^[2]

in 1936, Fels established the Samuel S. Fels Fund, which provides support to Philadelphia-area non-profit organizations. In 1937, his West Philadelphia mansion was given to the University of Pennsylvania, for the foundation of the Fels Institute of Government.^[3]

Fels is known for commissioning Samuel Barber's Violin Concerto Op. 14 in 1939.

In 1912, Henry H. Goddard dedicated his book on eugenics The Kallikak Family to Fels: "who made this study and who has followed the work from its incipiency with kindly criticism and advice".^[4]

• Fels Institute of Government, University of Pennsylvania
• The Fels Planetarium at The Franklin Institute Archived 2011-05-01 at the Wayback Machine
• The Samuel S. Fels Fund
• Fels Longitudinal Study
• Iso Briselli, the adopted son of Samuel S. Fels
• The Samuel Simeon Fels Papers, including correspondence, records and other materials, are available for research use at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.