The Kimmel Theater, a 350-seat star-shaped theater, features “Freedom Rising,” a multimedia production combining film, a live actor and video projection on a 360° screen to tell the stirring story of “We the people.” A permanent memorial to the Constitution was first proposed around the celebration of the centennial of the Constitution in 1887. However, it did not begin to take shape until the idea was proposed again 100 years later during the document’s bicentennial celebration in 1987.On September 16, 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed the Constitution Heritage Act of 1988 which established the National Constitution Center. The act called for a national center “within or in close proximity to the Independence National Historical Park” that “shall disseminate information about the United States Constitution on a nonpartisan basis in order to increase awareness and understanding of the Constitution among the American people.”The Center broke ground on September 17, 2000, 213 years to the day after the Constitution was signed. The Center’s 525 Arch Street address was specifically chosen because May 25 (5/25) is the date that the Constitutional Convention began in Philadelphia in 1787. The Center opened its doors on July 4, 2003.

The Center’s 525 Arch Street address was specifically chosen because May 25 (5/25) is the date that the Constitutional Convention began in Philadelphia in 1787.

Website

Video

The first and only institution in America established by Congress to "disseminate information about the United States Constitution," the 160,000-square-foot National Constitution Center explores the history and historical significance of the Constitution through high-tech exhibits, artifacts, and interactive displays. 

National Constitution Center

Admin

This walking tour includes two dozen museums, monuments, and other landmarks in the area between Chesnut and Race Street and from 7th Street to 2nd Street. Clio users may also customize this tour to create a personal itinerary that can include other nearby sites- be sure to save any customized version for personal use in your Clio account. 

Philadelphia History Museum was founded by City Ordinance in 1938 to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution in Philadelphia. The effort brought together City officials and preservation leaders to secure the original home of the Franklin Institute at 15 South 7th Street, an elegant Greek-Revival structure designed in 1826 by John Haviland, one of the country's foremost architects. Haviland’s largely unchanged façade was loosely based upon drawings of an ancient Greek monument. It features marble stairs flanked by faux-grained cast iron lamps approaching an inviting main entrance set in a marble surround. The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.With the building unused after the Franklin Institute moved to its present-day home on the Ben Franklin Parkway, the Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered demolishing the structure to make way for a parking lot. Henry Ford, the automobile manufacturer, offered to move the façade to his museum, Greenfield Village, near Detroit, Michigan.Hoping to save the historic building, newly elected Mayor S. Davis Wilson and Frances Wistar, president of the Philadelphia Society for the Preservation of Landmarks, reached out A. Atwater Kent. In 1938, A. Atwater Kent, one of the world’s great radio inventors and manufacturers, purchased the building and agreed to save the building on the condition that it be used as a city history museum. After three years of renovations carried out by the Works Progress Administration, the&nbsp;was formally dedicated on April 19, 1941.&nbsp;Renamed the Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent in 2010, the museum holds a collection of Philadelphia history composed of over 100,000 objects. Since its founding, PHM has been a partner in the Public History movement, collaborating with academic and cultural organizations to present the history of the city in ways that reflect the daily lives and issues of all Philadelphians.&nbsp;

Located in a historic 1826 building and located just around the corner from Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, the Philadelphia History Museum has served as a gateway into Philadelphia History for nearly 70 years. The Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent serves Greater Philadelphia by fostering among its citizens and visitors a deeper understanding and appreciation of the city, its historical artifacts, and its rich legacy. Drawing on its premiere 100,000 piece collection of objects, paintings, and photographs for exhibitions, programs, and electronic media, the museum's purpose is to educate present generations, especially school children, to learn from the past in ways that enrich their lives and improve their futures. 

Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent

Built by bricklayer Jacob Graff, Jr. in 1775, the Graff House originally stood on the rural outskirts of Philadelphia, surrounded by fields. Seeking a peaceful setting in which to work on the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson rented the two furnished second-story rooms above the Graff family's lodgings beginning in June of 1776. Jefferson had been selected as Virginia's alternate delegate to the Second Continental Congress, officially taking on the role of when Peyton Randolph, Virginia's First Continental Congress delegate in 1774, stayed in Williamsburg to help create a central state government in 1775. After a ten-day journey from his home state, Thomas Jefferson arrived in Philadelphia on June 21 and took lodgings with cabinetmaker Benjamin Randolph at The Golden Eagle near City Tavern, where delegates often dined and met. Congress adjourned on August 2 and reconvened on September 5; however, due to the death of Jefferson's 18-month-old daughter Jane, he did not return to Philadelphia from Monticello until the 25th of September. Jefferson spent one day of each week writing letters home to his grief-stricken wife, Martha, whose lack of replies worried Jefferson throughout November and December, in spite of reassurance from home that she was not ill. As British and Colonial relations worsened, so did Jefferson's family life, until finally he left Congress at the end of December, staying at Monticello with his wife until April of 1776. In addition to Martha's grief (and his own) over their daughter's death, Jefferson's mother died suddenly on March 31st at age 57. For over a month afterward, Jefferson suffered from acute migraines which delayed his return to Philadelphia; he even requested to be replaced in the Virginia delegation, but was re-elected to Congress instead, and returned to the capitol in May. At first, Jefferson resumed his lodgings with Benjamin Randolph, who made the portable lap-desk for him before Jefferson moved to the three-story Graff House the next month. Graff, his wife, and their infant son lived on the first floor, while Jefferson's bedroom and parlor were upstairs, on either side of the stairwell. Jefferson wrote and entertained guests in the parlor, including other members of Congress. Having made a name for himself with the publication in 1774 of Summary View of the Rights of British America and his drafting of a proposed Virginia constitution, and having caught the attention of Massachusetts delegate John Adams, Jefferson's youth (at only 33) did not prevent him from being chosen to draft the Declaration of Independence. On June 7, Congress chose The Committee of Five to write the Declaration: Adams, Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, (Connecticut), and Robert Livingston (New York). Adams, though eight years his senior, picked Jefferson to write the document, in part, because Jefferson was from Virginia, a Southern state—and the issue of independence required the support of the South in order to carry. In addition, Adams had pushed the issue of independence to the point of irritating the rest of Congress, while Jefferson was popular and well-liked. However, the primary reason was Adams' admiration for Jefferson's talent as a writer.

The first draft of the Declaration was written in just 17 days, with only Franklin and Adams providing input from the committee, and was presented to Congress on June 28, 1776. The public was unaware of Jefferson's authorship of the document until after the end of the American Revolution eight years later, in 1784. In part, this was because the writing of the document amounted to an act of treason, and it would be eight months before the names of those who signed the Declaration on July 4, 1776, were even revealed. Throughout the writing process, Jefferson had fretted about Martha and had found time to send home presents for her and for their four-year-old daughter, also named Martha. When his wife finally wrote to him, she begged him to come home, but he was left as the only delegate for Virginia in late July. Finally, fellow champion of independence Richard Henry Lee relieved Jefferson in early September, at which time Jefferson vacated Graff House for Monticello. During the Revolution, Jefferson served as a legislator and then Governor of Virginia.



Perhaps, in part, due to the delay in public knowledge of the authorship of the Declaration, Graff House received no recognition as a significant building in the 18th or 19th centuries. It later housed a print shop and a diner, and it was demolished in 1883. Thankfully, the building had survived long enough to be photographed before its demolition, and the National Park Service combined photographic evidence, known dimensions of the house, and descriptions from historical documents to reconstruct the building at the Independence Hall Association's request in 1975. A Georgian Style house featuring Flemish bond brickwork, the reconstructed Declaration House now serves as a museum.



Historic Marker Inscriptions:



Marker 1: In 1776, while attending the Continental Congress, Thomas Jefferson rented two rooms from Jacob Graff, Jr., to avoid the "excessive heats of the city." Here, in Graff's house on the outskirts of town, Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.



Marker 2:



In which Thomas Jefferson wrote The Declaration of Independence was reconstructed in 1975 with funds provided by the National Park Service and the Independence Hall Association Arthur C. Kaufmann, Chairman

Built by bricklayer Jacob Graff, Jr. in 1775, two rooms of the Graff House were rented by Thomas Jefferson during the summer of 1776 while he wrote the Declaration of Independence. In honor of the Bicentennial in 1976, the Declaration House was reconstructed from photographs and descriptions of the original building and refurnished with reproduced period furniture including Jefferson's swivel chair and lap desk. The house museum also includes exhibits and a film on the drafting of the Declaration.

Declaration House (Graff House)

The African American Museum of Philadelphia is the first of its kind to be built and funded&nbsp;by a major city to show the lives of African Americans. Museum&nbsp;founder Clarence Farmer worked with&nbsp;founding director Charles H. Wesley who earned a Ph.D. from Harvard University.&nbsp;The museum has a variety of permanent exhibits that tell the story of freedom in Africa, enslavement in America, and liberation through the agency and activism of many generations.&nbsp;The current museum is comprised of over twenty directors who make up the board of directors which is headed by President and CEO of AAMP Patricia Wilson Alden. The museum has also acquired several artifacts from the Philadelphia Civic Center and the Jack T. Franklin collection. &nbsp;Franklin, upon his death, donated his collection of over 500,000 negatives and photographs to be put on display at the museum. &nbsp;Some of the photographs contained images of Thurgood Marshall, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and Jesse Jackson. &nbsp;The Civic Center of Philadelphia donated musical instruments, weapons, tools, jewelry, and cushions to be placed on display at the museum.&nbsp; The Jack T. Franklin collection, which is a donation from the photographer of over 500,000 photographs from his career, and the Philadelphia Civic Center Museum Collection. The latter collection was a generous gift from the Philadelphia Civic Center Museum that presented the AAMP with over 300 new African Artifacts. In addition to the previously listed major collections, the African American Museum in Philadelphia was also able to purchase, with the help of a grant from Save America's Treasures, Pearl Bailey's personal photographs and photographs from the Cash/Thompson collection.

Established in 1976, the African American Museum in Philadelphia is the first museum in the United States created and funded by a local government to help convey the history and heritage of African Americans to United States citizens. The museum covers the period from slavery to civil rights with over 750,000 artifacts and four galleries. Each gallery contains a variety of exhibits that interpret the museum's collection, selecting items from the collection and placing their history within the larger narrative of the African American experience. The museum also offers a variety of special thematic exhibits throughout the year, to ensure that every visit provides a new learning experience. A huge plus for young children visiting the museum is the "Children's Corner", an interactive exhibit where children explore the lives of young African American children. 

African American Museum in Philadelphia

The Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society built Pennsylvania Hall and dedicated the building on May 14, 1838. The building hosted a three-day convention of the city's female abolitionists, but before the end of the meeting, a mob had assembled to disrupt the meeting and attack the women for their opposition to slavery. Although Pennsylvania passed laws providing for the gradual end of slavery in their own state shortly after the American Revolution, many white residents of the city believed that the abolitionists were encouraging Black migration to the area. They also believed that abolitionists were to blame for the growing political strife between the North and the South. The mob grew extremely violent by the third day of the meeting, encouraged by members of the police who seemed to countenance the violence against abolitionists and their property. On May 17th, only three days after the dedication of the building, the anti-abolitionist mob set fire to Pennsylvania Hall and attacked anyone who tried to save the building. 

Burning of Pennsylvania Hall in Anti-Abolitionist Riot of 1838

The Society of Freinds disowned or "read out" the group of Quakers who supported the rebellion in 1780. These Quakers met in the hone of Samuell Wetherill and others for the next few years. In 1783 and with the financial support of leading residents such as Robert Morris and supporters of the Revolution such as Benjamin Franklin and George Washington, the "Free Quakers" acquired land and began building this structure in 1783.&nbsp; &nbsp; Timothy Matlack,&nbsp;the individual who wrote out the Declaration of Independence, also drafted some of the plans for this structure. The building served as the home of several private schools in the later 1700s and early 1800s while doubling as a Quaker Meeting House. It later served as the home of the Apprentices' Library Company of Philadelphia. The building was also moved slightly west and south when 5th Street&nbsp;(N Independence Mall) was widened in the early 1960s.&nbsp; The meetinghouse was originally a one-story structure and a second story was added in 1788. At that time, the building was also home to John Poor's Academy for Young Ladies. The second building was also utilized by the Grand Lodge of the Freemasons&nbsp;from 1791 to 1799 and the Philadelphia Select Academy from 1800 to 1836. The Apprentices' Library Company of Philadelphia occupied the building from 1841 to 1897. The structure later served as the home of various businesses until 1957 when the state acquired the structure as part of the larger effort to create Independence Mall as a heritage tourism complex. The building includes artifacts and&nbsp;is operated by Historic Philadelphia.&nbsp;

Constructed between 1783 and 1784 by a group of Philadelphia Quakers who had been forced out by other Quakers for their early support of the American Revolution, this structure served as the meetinghouse of the "Free Quakers." Because Quakers were pacifists, the majority of the city's Quakers opposed this group's support of the colonists who took up arms against England. A few dozen Quakers met at this meetinghouse until 1836. During the 1780s when the group was most active, members included some of the leading men and women who supported the rebellion such as Betsy Ross. With military conflicts between England, France, and the United States coming to an end after the War of 1812, the factors that led to the division between the Free Quakers and others in the city declined. In addition, fewer and fewer members lived in this part of the city by 1830, and this meeting house was no longer utilized by the Quakers after 1836. 

Free Quaker Meeting House

Records indicate that there was a Jewish presence beginning in 1682. However, it wasn't until the next century that a more established Jewish population emerged. The congregation has built five temples in all, including the current one. The first one was built in 1782. Before that the congregation met in private homes and rented spaces. The second temple, a white stone structure,&nbsp;was built in 1825. The third was constructed in 1860. This one was designed by the same architect, John McArthur,&nbsp;who would design City Hall. The fourth temple was built in 1909, and the current one in 1976. The congregation earned its nickname during the American Revolution because its members were active in the cause. Some of its members participated in the rejection of the Stamp Act (the law the British imposed on the colonies to help pay for the French and Indian Wars) in 1765. Also, Jews from further east fled to Philadelphia to seek refuge from the British. &nbsp;

Also referred to as the "Synagogue of the American Revolution," Congregation Mikveh Israel is Philadelphia's oldest, continuously operating Jewish congregation. It was founded in the 1740s by Spanish and Portuguese Jews. The congregation continues to worship according to the practices began by those Jews of Spanish and Portuguese origin (which is also known as Sephardic). The current temple was built in 1976 and it originally housed the National Museum of Jewish History, which moved to a new location just to the south. The congregation uses the extra space for exhibits and events.

Congregation Mikveh Israel

The National
Museum of American Jewish History initially shared space with the Congregation
Mikveh Israel when it was founded back in 1976.&nbsp;
By 2005 discussion of creating a new home began and fund raising efforts
began in earnest as well.&nbsp; A site
formerly owned by a CBS news affiliate along Independence Mall was selected and
the glass and terra cotta building, designed by James Polshek, was completed in
2010.&nbsp; The opening ceremony was attended
by the likes of Vice President Joe Biden, Mayor Michael Nutter and Rabbi Irving
Goldberg.

The museum
is anchored by a core exhibition that spans 3.5 of the building’s five
stories.&nbsp; It is centered on the different
backgrounds and experiences of Jews who immigrated to America as well as the following
generations that were born and raised here.&nbsp;
It examines who they were, the places they came from, the challenges
they faced, the choices they made and how they were influenced by America, and
how they, in turn, influenced their adopted country.&nbsp; Visitors get to listen to their stories, both
joyous and sorrowful.&nbsp; Through historical
artifacts, period settings, media, and interactive technology, one learns about
various aspects of Jewish religious, social and economic experiences in
America.

The
exhibition follows a roughly chronological order beginning on the fourth floor
with a section entitled “Foundations of Freedom, 1654-1880.”&nbsp; On the third floor, visitors travel through
the “Dreams of Freedom, 1880-1945” piece, while on the second floor they are
greeted by the “Choices and Challenges of Freedom, 1945-Today” section.&nbsp; Finally, on the first floor, the museum
features its “Only in America Gallery and Hall of Fame.”&nbsp; This exhibit features 18 famous (Albert
Einstein, Sandy Koufax, Golda Meir) and not-so-famous Jewish-Americans (Rose
Scheiderman, Isaac Leeser, Menachem Mendel Schneerson) who each made significant
contributions in their own manner.

The museum
also features rotating or special exhibitions and recent ones have included “Bill
Graham and the Rock &amp; Roll Revolution” that focused on influential concert
promoter Bill Graham and his Fillmore Auditorium, as well as his interactions
with legends such as Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones.&nbsp; A special 2017 exhibition will be/is/was “1917:
How One Year Changed the World” that looks at how America’s entry into World
War I, the Bolshevik Revolution and the Balfour Declaration…well, changed the
world.

The museum
also sponsors traveling exhibitions such as “Chasing Dreams: Baseball and
Becoming American” that looks at the role the national pastime has played in,
not just the Jewish community, but all minority communities in America.&nbsp; Finally, the museum offers numerous educational
opportunities in the form of K-12 lessons and activities, summer camps,
professional development for educators and adult education classes.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Focused on the formation of the Jewish-American identity, the National Museum of American Jewish History was founded back in 1976.  It moved to its current, 100,000-square foot home on Philadelphia’s Independence Mall in late 2010.  The museum covers the Jewish-American experience from colonial times to present day through permanent and rotating exhibitions as well as educational programs.  This Smithsonian affiliated museum is open every day except Mondays and certain holidays, Jewish and national alike.

National Museum of American Jewish History

The President's House: Freedom and Slavery in the Making of a New Nation is an open-air commemoration of America's first executive mansion, the residence of George Washington and John Adams during their terms as President while Philadelphia was the temporary national capital following the Revolution. It is also a commemoration to the nine enslaved African Americans who worked in this house during George Washington's time there, two of whom escaped. It is part of the Independence National Historical Park site, and features a house outline and partial elevation, with interpretive displays on Porcelite panels and illustrated glass, including text and video 24 hours a day. In addition to the history of the site and the people who lived and worked there, the interpretive material explores the paradox of a nation founded on the principle of equality and freedom while still allowing the institution of slavery [1; 9].

The President's House - Washington and Adams

<div>In 1751,&nbsp;three representatives of Pennsylvania's assembly began a successful campaign to create and&nbsp;hang a ceremonial bell in the State House. The bell was cast in the Whitechapel Foundry and arrived on September 1, 1752 in Philadelphia. Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly Issac Norris first ordered a bell for the bell tower in independence hall and that bell cracked on the first test ring. John Pass and John Stowe, who were two local metal workers, then melted down that bell and created a new one which is what we currently know as the Liberty Bell. A thin crack emerged on the bell and though the first crack wasn't recorded it was estimated to be around 1840 after 90 years of use. Metal workers tried to fix the crack by widening it to ensure that it didn't crack any further, but they were unsuccessful and a second crack emerged going up the bell, silencing it forever. &nbsp;&nbsp; The bell weighs over 2000 pounds and is over 13 feet in circumference. It&nbsp;was originally used to call lawmakers to there meetings and townspeople to hear the reading of the news. It wasn’t until almost 80 years later that bell began to become a symbol of liberty. The&nbsp;bell also tolled for many special events during the late colonial era and may have been one of the many bells that tolled in commemoration of the reading of the Declaration of Independence. It also probably helped spread the news of the&nbsp;Battle of Lexington &amp; Concord in 1775. By&nbsp;1772, nearby residents&nbsp;petitioned the government, asking them to&nbsp;stop tolling the bell so often.&nbsp;</div><div> </div><div>The complaints likely succeeded as the bell was out of the public eye and largely forgotten during the&nbsp;1800s.&nbsp;In the 1830s, abolitionists started referring to the&nbsp;bell as the Liberty Bell instead of the&nbsp;"State House Bell" as it was commonly known. The movement&nbsp;adopted eventually the bell as a symbol of their&nbsp;commitment to the abolition of slaves.&nbsp;William Lloyd Garrison even&nbsp;published a poem about the bell in The Liberator, his&nbsp;antislavery newspaper. Perhaps ironically given its abolitionist roots and the nation's retreat from liberty for former slaves&nbsp;during Reconstruction, the&nbsp;Liberty Bell embarked on a cross-country journey&nbsp;to symbolize unity after the Civil War. A replica bell was sent around the country during the Women's suffrage movement in 1915. </div><div> </div>The Liberty Bell Center opened in 2003 and explores the history of the bell. Every year on the 4th of July, descendants of the signers of the Declaration of independence have the opportunity to tap the bell thirteen times, symbolizing the freedom of the thirteen colonies.

The Liberty Bell is one of the iconic American historical artifacts. It was commissioned in 1751 to commemorate William Penn's Charter of Privileges (1701), which was the first constitution of Pennsylvania colony. It hung in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House (what is now called Independence Hall; this is where colonial delegates debated and signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution) and is now on display inside the Liberty Bell Center at Independence National Historical Park.

A verse from Leviticus 25:10 is inscribed on the bell: "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all inhabitants thereof." The crack in the bell appeared in the 1830s, but the quality of the bell was suspect from its earliest day. After being recast, the colony ordered a second bell but decided to keep the original. That second bell was sold to a Philadelphia Catholic church in 1828. After an anti-Catholic mob destroyed that church and damaged the second bell in 1844, that bell was recast and is now the property of Villanova University. 

Liberty Bell

In the early years of the gay rights movement, committed LGBT activists from the Washington, DC and New York City chapters of the Mattachine Society, Philadelphia’s Janus Society and the New York chapter of the Daughters of Bilitus coordinated their efforts and held protests. The activists gathered at the White House in April 1965 to demand equal rights for LGBT citizens. Together, the groups operated as the East Coast Homophile Organizations (ECHO). The organizer of the White House picket was Frank Kameny, who would come to be regarded as one of the most significant figures in the early years of the LGBT movement. Inspired by the Washington, DC pickets, activist Craig Rodwell conceived an idea for a similar event in Philadelphia. Led by Kameny and local activist Barbara Gittings, the Philadelphia event was planned for just three months later, in July of 1965. Kameny insisted that picketers follow a strict dress code of jackets and ties for men and dresses for women. The move angered some LGBT supporters but Kameny wanted to project an image of homosexuals as “presentable and employable” in hopes of winning more supporters. The choice of Independence Hall for the event was a calculated one. It was important to Kameny and other activists to highlight the fact that they were simply demanding the basic individual freedoms enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. Thirty-nine people picketed, carrying placards demanding equal treatment under the law. At the time, it was the largest known demonstration for homosexual rights in the United States. The event, which came to be known as the Annual Reminder, took place every July 4th in Philadelphia until 1969. The final reminder event took place on July 4 of that year, just days after the Stonewall Riots in New York City, an event that led organizers to conclude that the course of homosexual activism was permanently changed. After 1969, Reminders were gradually replaced with pride parades, most of which are held in June, on or near the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. The marker that commemorates the Reminders was placed in 2005 by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. In 2015, a number of events, including a reenactment, were held to recognize the fiftieth anniversary of the first Reminder.

From 1965 to 1969, gay rights activists from Washington, DC, New York, and Philadelphia met each July 4th to picket in front of Independence Hall to demand legislation that would protect the rights of LGBT citizens. The event came to be known as the “Annual Reminder” that many American citizens were denied the basic rights enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. The events were commemorated in 2005 with the dedication of this historical marker across the street from Independence Hall.

Annual Reminders Historical Marker (Gay Pioneers Historical Marker)

Adjacent to
Independence Hall, Congress Hall became the home to the U.S. Congress after the
newly ratified Constitution allowed for the creation of a federal district to
serve as the nation’s capital.&nbsp; Congress,
meeting in New York City, passed the Residence Act in 1790 that established the
District of Columbia as the nation’s new capital.&nbsp; While this new capital was being constructed,
Robert Morris convinced Congress to move the capital back to Philadelphia and
the Residence Act dictated that the city would be the temporary capital for ten
years.

As a result,
the Philadelphia County Courthouse was expanded, its interior altered and it
was renamed Congress Hall.&nbsp; The House of
Representatives met on the building’s first floor.&nbsp; The chamber was austerely furnished with dark
mahogany desks, plain leather chairs and with minimal ornamentation.&nbsp; However, the second floor, upon which the
Senate met, was ornately decorated and furnished with heavy red curtains,
individual secretary’s desks, a hunter green coat of paint and a thick carpet
with the shields of the first thirteen states.&nbsp;
A fresco of a bald eagle holding the requisite olive branch was painted
on the ceiling and a plaster medallion of a sunburst was also added to the
ceiling with thirteen stars representing the original thirteen colonies.

Some of the
more famous acts passed by Congress while in residence here include the
admission of three states to the Union: Vermont in 1791, Kentucky in 1792 and
Tennessee in 1796.&nbsp; Congress Hall also
witnessed the passage of the Bill of Rights, George Washington’s second
inauguration in 1793 and the inauguration of John Adams in 1797.&nbsp; Congress also established the First Bank of
The United States, the Federal Mint and the U.S. Navy while in session at Congress
Hall.

In 1800,
Congress Hall reverted back to the Philadelphia County Courthouse and added
state and federal courts during the first half of the 19th
century.&nbsp; However, the courts eventually
moved to more modern facilities and the building fell into disrepair.&nbsp; Renovations to the old Senate chamber took
place in 1895-96 and the American Institute of Architects undertook fund
raising efforts in 1900.&nbsp; Their efforts
were successful as the building was restored by 1912 and rededicated by
President Woodrow Wilson in 1913.&nbsp; More
work took place in 1934 and the Independence National Historical Park took control of the building in 1956.&nbsp;&nbsp;Today, Congress Hall has been restored to its
simplistic grandeur of the 1790s.&nbsp; &nbsp;

Congress Hall, located on Philadelphia’s Independence Square, served as the seat of the U.S. Congress from December 6, 1790 through May 14, 1800 while Philadelphia was the nation’s capital.  The building was initially the Philadelphia County Courthouse when construction was completed in 1789.  It went back to that function after Congress moved to the newly created Washington D.C.  Congress Hall has since been restored, is now part of the larger Independence National Historical Park and is open for guided tours on a daily basis from March through December.  

Congress Hall

<blockquote>"We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal..."</blockquote>Construction on Independence Hall began in 1732, originally designed to be the Pennsylvania State House and house all three branches of its colonial government; the legislative, the executive, and the judicial branches. During the Second Continental Congress, which later became the Constitutional Convention of 1787, the state of Pennsylvania loaned out their assembly room for the convention to meet. It was there at Independence Hall in 1776 that George Washington was named Commander in Chief of the Continental Army. In 1781, the Articles of Confederation were adopted in Independence Hall. And in 1787, our founding fathers and statesmen from the newly independent country signed the U.S. Constitution, the same constitution that is in place today. The living document has been amended, but the ideals of the founding fathers still live on. The Independence Hall would be the site of the funeral for President Abraham Lincoln as he was shot in the back of the head by stage actor John Wilkes Booth. This incident happened on April 14 and Lincoln succumbed to his injuries the very next morning. A train traveled with his casket onboard retracing the same route that President Lincoln took when he was first inaugurated in 1861. His funeral would then be held inside the Assembly Room at Independence Hall and over 300,000 guests attended his viewing prior to the burial. President Lincoln is now buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in his own tomb in Illinois, a state he once served as a congressman for.President William Howard Taft also used Independence Hall in order to push for the formation of an international organization designated to keeping peace between countries. The League to Enforce Peace (later League of Nations and then the United Nations) was established in 1915 for the purpose of keeping world peace. It was created due to American citizens being concerned of the outbreak of war in Europe. However, a year prior to this organization being established, World War I broke out due to multiple factors including the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. The organization ceased operations in 1923 after the war.Independence Hall became apart of Independence National Historical Park, which was established by the U.S. Congress in 1948. This was an effort to preserve the history of structures dating back to the American Revolution and declaration of America’s independence. In Independence Hall, visitors can explore the building by taking a guided tour. The guided tour takes the visitors through a number of rooms that are set up in the way that they would have appeared during the Revolution. The Assembly Room, which is the most famous, is where visitors can see the exact room where both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were signed. Across the hall from the Assembly Room is the Courtroom of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The second floor of the building houses the Long Gallery, Governor's Council Chamber, and the Committee of the Assembly Chamber.The Long Gallery originally served as a reception area for visitors waiting to see the Governor. It was also the host of parties and dinners hosted by the Governor. During British occupation, the Long Gallery was used as a hospital to care for wounded American prisoners of war. The Governor's Council Chamber was where Pennsylvania's Supreme Executive Council met during the 1700s. The Committee of the Assembly Chamber was used as a room for meetings and military storage during the 1700s and was the office of the U.S. Marshal during the 1800s.

Completed in 1753, Independence Hall is considered the birthplace of the United States. It was here that both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were signed establishing the foundation of the law in this country. It served as the first capitol building for the United States, but was originally built to serve as the state house for Pennsylvania. It was also a convention site hosted by President William Howard Taft which would lead to the creation of the League to Enforce Peace. It is a part of Independence National Historical Park, which also includes the Liberty Bell Center and the Benjamin Franklin Museum along with a visitor center that includes theaters, exhibits, and a gift shop.

Independence Hall

Robert Morris’ nine-foot bronze statue on a limestone base
was sculpted in 1925 by Paul Wayland Bartlett as a commission from the Pennsylvania
Bankers Association, the Fairmount Park Commission, and Commonwealth of
Pennyslvania. &nbsp;After Limerick Brothers of
Baltimore cast the statue of Robert Morris in 1926, it was placed on the
Chestnut Street steps of the Second Bank of the United States where it remained
until its removal to the current location in 1961. 

"Robert Morris (1734-1806), an English-born merchant and
statesman, and later one of America’s “Founding Fathers”. A patriot, he signed
the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, and U.S.
Constitution. 

An immigrant orphaned at 16, Robert Morris became a partner
in a leading Philadelphia mercantile firm, the Willing &amp; Morris Company, by
the age of 22. The company traded throughout Europe, America and the West
Indies. Like many merchants, their cargo included grain, animal hides, and
enslaved Africans. 

During the Revolutionary war (1734 – 1806), Morris used his
genius for finance and his maritime trading connections to secure vital funds
and supplies for the Continental Army. As superintendent for finance
(1781-1784), Morris rescued the new nation from financial ruin. He stabilized
the economy by creating the first national bank, a model for our modern banking
system. As one of the first U.S. senators from Pennsylvania (1789 – 1795),
Morris was instrumental in making Philadelphia the temporary capital during the
construction of Washington, D.C. 

One of the wealthiest men in America, Morris speculated
heavily in land. Overextended, he fell into bankruptcy and spent three years in
debtors’ prison (Walnut Street Prison). Washington did not forget Morris' loyal
service and often visited the financier while he was jailed. He lived modestly
until his death in 1806, while the new nation he did so much to create
prospered and grew.&nbsp;

Robert Morris’ statue is situated between the First and Second National Banks, in the Independence National Historical Park, as a reminder of his pivotal role in the Revolution, 1734 - 1806. The monument represents Robert Morris, dressed in great coat and Tricorn hat, struggling through the snow to raise money for Washington's troops at Valley Forge. 
Robert Morris Jr. (1734-1806) was an American merchant and a signer to the United States Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the United States Constitution. Morris was known as the Financier of the Revolution, because of his role in securing financial assistance for the American side in the Revolutionary War. Ironically, he was sent to debtor's prison in later life. 

Robert Morris Statue 

Philadelphia’s first city hall was located near the Delaware River on 2nd Street and was built during the lifetime of William Penn. Construction on the city’s second city hall, now known as Old City Hall, began in 1790 and was completed the next year. This simple building is an excellent example of Federalist architecture and features Palladian windows. The mayor’s office and council chamber were located on the second floor, while the first floor was home to the Mayor’s Court. However, it came to share space with the United States Supreme Court while Philadelphia served as the federal capital from 1790-1800. The creation of a Supreme Court was called for in Article III of the U.S. Constitution and the Judiciary Act of 1789 brought it into the open. In 1791, it first met in the Merchants’ Exchange building of New York City and later transferred to Philadelphia in order to join the rest of the federal government. It initially consisted of a chief justice with five associate justices. However, during its early years, the Court had little power. In fact, it heard no cases for the first two years of its existence. Also, the justices served as “circuit riders” as the country was divided into different “circuits” or courts. They often considered cases alongside local judges despite the travel difficulties this practice created. This practice was officially abolished in 1891.The first real case of significance heard by the Supreme Court was the Chisholm v. Georgia case in 1793. In this case, a resident of South Carolina sought to recoup payment from Georgia for goods supplied during the Revolutionary War. The Court ruled in favor of the plaintiff. However, the decision was overturned by passage of the 11th Amendment into the Constitution. Another case of consequence was the 1794 Georgia v. Brailsford case that dealt with the issue of repaying debt after the colonies gained their independence from Britain. This case was reenacted in 2016 by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Stephen Breyer and Samuel Alito in Old City Hall.Old City Hall also served as the volunteer headquarters during Philadelphia’s yellow fever epidemic of 1793. Many African-Americans, working under the umbrella of the Free African Society, to include Richard Allen and Absalom Jones, labored within Old City Hall to ease the pain of the afflicted. Additionally, Old City Hall hosted municipal government courts and served as the city’s immigration center during the 19th century. Today, visitors can view the room where the Supreme Court met, which has been adorned with period furnishings although not all are original to the room.

Completed in 1901, Philadelphia’s Independence Hall is flanked by two buildings: Congress Hall, where the country’s first congressional sessions took place, and Old City Hall. That structure is the city’s second city hall and it did not exclusively serve as a seat of government for much of its history. Designed by David Evans Jr., in the Federalist style, Old City Hall was completed in 1791 and then shut down in 1854. Old City Hall shared space with the U.S. Supreme Court until 1800 when the federal capital moved the court to Washington D.C. It is part of the Independence Hall Complex which is contained within the larger Independence National Historical Park.

Philadelphia's Old City Hall

The United States came out of the War of 1812, which ended in 1815, in financial difficulty. It was in severe debt and state and local banks were causing chaos by being permitted to print their own bank notes. As a result, the push for a second national bank gained momentum, led by financiers John Jacob Astor, Jacob Barker, Stephen Girard, and David Parish and politicians Alexander Dallas and John C. Calhoun, and it was created with the stroke of President James Madison’s pen in 1816. Modeled after Alexander Hamilton’s First Bank, it opened its doors in January of 1817 and was responsible for all the financial transactions of the United States’ Government. It was also tasked with regulating the notes and credit issued by private and state banks, establishing a stable and secure national currency and controlling inflation, among other things. By 1832, it had established 25 branch offices in cities such as Boston, St, Louis, and Lexington.The bank came under severe criticism after the Panic of 1819, an extended recession that caused severe credit restrictions and massive unemployment. The bank’s reputation and standing was temporarily rebuilt under the guidance of its third president, Nicholas Biddle, and it was on sound footing by Andrew Jackson’s first inauguration in 1829. The bank’s constitutionality had also been established by the Supreme Court’s ruling in the McCulloch v. Maryland case of 1819. However, President Jackson still viewed the bank as unconstitutional and a corrupt institution run by the country’s elite. The bank became a major campaign issue during the election of 1832 as Jackson’s opponent, Henry Clay, sought its re-charter four years prior to its expiration. Jackson acted quickly when he vetoed the re-charter and then withdrew all federal funds from the bank after he was re-elected. The bank limped along until its original charter expired in 1836, when it became a private institution which was eventually liquidated in 1841. The building itself was designed by American architect, William Strickland, in the Greek Revival style. Strickland’s design was chosen over his mentor’s, Benjamin Latrobe. Strickland also designed the Merchants’ Exchange Building which sits a few blocks away. He used the Greek Parthenon as his model, including wide stairs leading to its main level and huge Doric columnns. It was constructed with Pennsylvania blue marble from 1819-1824. The building served numerous functions after the bank was not re-chartered, to include the Custom House of Philadelphia. Over the years, its interior was drastically altered and the only original items include its barrel-vaulted ceiling, marble columnns in the main room, and the side fireplaces. It now is home to an art gallery that focuses on the portraits of famous early Americans, many done by Charles Wilson Peale. The portraits include many well-known figures, such as Thomas Jefferson, James and Dolley Madison, and Alexander Hamilton.

Part of Philadelphia’s Independence National Historical Park, the building that is most famous for housing the Second Bank of the United States was completed in 1824.  It represented the nation’s second effort at creating a national bank after the First Bank was not re-chartered in 1811.  It served as the nation’s bank until it was dismantled, largely by President Andrew Jackson, in 1836.  The building now serves the city as an art gallery that features its “People of Independence” exhibit.  This exhibit displays over 150 portraits of influential 18th and 19th century Americans.  The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

Second Bank of the United States

Anthony Benezet was born French Protestant parents in 1713. To escape the persecution that French Protestants (known as Huguenots) faced, Benezet's family emigrated to London when he was just 2 years old. When he was 17, Benezet&nbsp;joined his family when they moved from London to Philadelphia.

Once in Philadelphia, Benezet joined the Quakers and began teaching school in Germantown. He later taught at the Religious Society of Friends’ English School of Philadelphia. In the evenings, Benezet volunteered his time teaching poor African American children. In 1754, Benezet established what some consider to be the first public school for girls in America.&nbsp;Benezet wrote and published anti-slavery tracts and pamphlets and distributed&nbsp;them at his own expense and at great risk to&nbsp;his safety. Among his most famous works,&nbsp;Some Historical Account of Guinea&nbsp;influenced both British and colonial thought among the small number of slavery's opponents after its publication in 1772. He also convinced many of his Quaker brethren in Philadelphia that slave-owning was not consistent with the Christian doctrine.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Anthony Benezet was a French-born American Quaker and teacher who helped educate numerous African American children from his home which was located here in the decades leading up to the American Revolution. Benezet was one of the leading abolitionists in the city during the 18th century and authored numerous articles that influenced the nascent antislavery movement.

Anthony Benezet Historical Marker

Built on the
site of the former welcome center created for the Bicentennial celebrations of
1976, the Museum of the American Revolution was constructed at a cost of $150
million, mostly raised through private donations.&nbsp; The developers sought to create a museum with
a distinct bottom-up view of the American Revolution, rather than the typical
top-down analysis.&nbsp; To that end, the
museum offers perspectives from the marginalized peoples of the era, such as
free and enslaved Blacks, Native Americans, women and the “lower sorts.”&nbsp; The museum brings these voices to the fore in
the form of a film re-creation of members of the Oneida nation debating which
side to support, colonial or royal (they sided with the Americans) and
recounting the experiences of former slaves who fought for the British.

The museum
is designed to take one through a journey towards independence in such a way
that “…you enter as a [British} subject, but leave as a[n] [American] citizen.”&nbsp; On your journey, you will encounter the
Declaration of Independence Gallery, where the minds behind the museum decided
to focus on over 80 local declarations, to include one from Pennsylvania
written in German, rather than THE Declaration.&nbsp;
The exhibit also presents the thoughts of 10 common people, men and
women, free and enslaved, as independence arrived whether they sought it or
not.&nbsp; The exhibits also present both colonial
and loyalist views of the Revolution as evidenced by comparing and contrasting
Thomas Paine’s famous pro-independence pamphlet, Common Sense, with its loyalist counterpart, Plain Truth, written by James Chalmers.

The museum
contains over 30 audio-visual experiences, 16 core galleries, ten theaters,
seven exhibits with life-cast figures, and 500 artifacts from the period.&nbsp; Included within this collection is the Field
of Battle Theater where patrons can view the re-enactment of the 1777 battle of
Chadds Ford, during which the floor rumbles and the smell of gunpowder wafts
through the theater.&nbsp; In the War at Sea
Gallery, young visitors can climb aboard a re-created 18th century
ship’s deck.&nbsp; However, as with all things
revolutionary, the most popular exhibit is that which includes one of George
Washington’s original headquarters tent, which is part of a larger multimedia
presentation.&nbsp; Finally, the museum leaves
its visitors with the images of 150 photographs of people that were born during
the Revolution followed by a wall of mirrors for a bit of self-reflection as
they depart.&nbsp;

Opened in the spring of 2017, Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution takes visitors on a unique audio and visual experience through the nation’s formative struggle.  The museum offers numerous immersive exhibits that include life-like figures, video and audio presentations, historic artifacts and primary documents and was in the planning stages for 20 years.  The 118,000 square-foot museum was designed by Robert A. M. Stern and is properly located near the birthplace of the Constitution, near the First Bank of the United States and a few blocks from Independence Hall.  The museum is open daily and offers regular and timed tickets to alleviate wait times during peak hours.  

Museum of the American Revolution

In 1979, the American Chemistry Society
proposed a plan to construct a national center for the history of chemistry.
Through the efforts of chemist and museum curator Arnold Thackray, funds from
private and institutional sources were secured for the construction of such a
project in Philadelphia, and in 1981, the proposal was approved for
constructing the center in the city with the cooperation of the University of
Pennsylvania. In 1983, the Center for the History of Chemistry was established,
occupying only two basement rooms of the University of Pennsylvania. Even in
its fledgling years, the Center gained support and hosted a number of traveling
exhibits, though it had high hopes to one day have the resources and space
available to collaborate with the likes of the Smithsonian Institute.

The Center quickly gained support
over the years, gaining funds from sources such as the Arnold and Mabel Beckman
Foundation’s challenge grants, and support from other institutions in order to
expand the Center. Through this continued support, the Center changed its name
first to the National Foundation for the History of Chemistry, and then again
in 1992 to the Chemical Heritage Foundation, in order to reflect that the
support given to the Foundation reached beyond the United States. As the
collection and support of the Foundation continued to grow, so too did the need
for permanent exhibits and a more solid location. It was not until October of
2008 that the Foundation unveiled the museum and conference center components.

The Science History Institute offers exhibits and programs dedicated to preserving the history of chemistry and related sciences such as chemical engineering and the life sciences. Founded in 1982 as the Center for the History of Chemistry and as a collaboration between the University of Pennsylvania and the American Chemical Society, the organization was known as the Chemical Heritage Foundation for many years prior to the merger of that organization with the Life Sciences Foundation. Today, the Science HIstory Institute collects items and stories related to the history of science. In addition to serving as the headquarters of the organization, this building houses a museum, library, archives, conference center, and a research center dedicated to expanding the knowledge and ever-expanding history of the life sciences and chemistry. 

Science History Institute (Formerly the Chemical Heritage Foundation)

<div>The museum itself is divided into five distinction sections, all representing certain personality traits of Benjamin Franklin: ambition, curiosity, self-motivation, persuasiveness, and charm. The museum itself is arranged to mimic rooms of Franklin's house. This museum is unique in that it does not focus on a certain timeline in his life, but instead, explores his personal interests as well as his various occupations, from being a printer all the way up to his time as a diplomat. For the musically inclined, Franklin's invention of the glass instrument, harmonica, is on display. In fact there are more than forty-five historical artifacts that give visitors a glimpse into the life and times of a Founding Father. Some artifacts that visitors might find especially interesting are: a family Bible, Franklin's personal chess set, and the sedan chair in which he sat on to be taken to the Constitutional Convention, to name a few. There around thirty computer animations, including audio and interactive displays, and eleven tactile displays as well, making exhibits accessible to people of all abilities.</div><div> </div><div>&nbsp; The last and most pungent reminder of Franklin's life is a projection room meant to mimic Franklin's library. On the screen, is a movie style depiction of Franklin's life. &nbsp;Ultimately, the goal of this museum is bring back the relevance of Franklin as a significant historical figure to the City of Brotherly Love by reminding Americans of his achievements and correcting some misconceptions, such as the one of the most common misconceptions about him; that he discovered electricity, when he did not.&nbsp;</div><div> </div>The museum is fully handicapped accessible. The fees to enter the museum: $5 for adults and $2 for children (16 years old &amp; younger) Schools are eligible for free admission, for more information on this, please call: 215-597-7122 two weeks prior of the intended visit Benjamin Franklin's favorite animal was the squirrel and there is a special guide for families: Skuggs the squirrel!

This museum is located adjacent to where Benjamin Franklin's house once stood back in the 1700s, and is taking up residence in the Independence National Historic Park. The museum is 20,000 square feet and underground. The exhibits and museum store are underground as well. To get visitors in the appropriate mind set, before the museum entrance is the Benjamin Franklin Ghost house.  Above ground, this ghost house is a steel structure designed by architects to trace outlines  of Franklin's old house and his old printing shop. Established in 1976, the museum has gone through a massive upgrade within the last two years and reopened to the public in August 2013.

  



Benjamin Franklin Museum

The first
church built at the corner of Market and 2nd Streets was done so in
1696 and was a small wooden and brick structure.&nbsp; It managed to house the growing congregation
until a new church began to take shape in 1727.&nbsp;
This new church was of a simple, yet elegant design and its architect
has been lost to history.&nbsp; However, we do
know that construction was overseen by a local physician named John Kearsley
and that is was modeled after the London works of Christopher Wren.&nbsp; When it was finally completed in 1744 its
unassuming design featured clean lines, arched windows, fluted columnns and &nbsp;wooden pews painted white.&nbsp; It would eventually become instrumental in
the founding of the Protestant Episcopal Church after the Anglican Church fell
out of favor during the Revolutionary period.&nbsp;


The
architectural feature that the church is best known for, its 60-meter tall
spire, was not added until 1754 and remained the tallest structure in North
America until 1810.&nbsp; The spire was designed
by Robert Smith and none other than Benjamin Franklin organized the lottery
used to finance its construction.&nbsp; During
its first century, Christ Church was the site where 25% of Philadelphia’s free
and enslaved Blacks were baptized and it was also home to a religious school
for slaves.&nbsp; During the two Continental Congresses,
most of the delegates worshipped at the church.&nbsp;
Those who attended services at the church reads like a “who’s who” of colonial
and early American leaders, to include: George Washington, Benjamin Franklin,
Betsy Ross, Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, John Penn (grandson of William),
Francis Hopkinson, John Adams and Absalom Jones (the first African-American
Episcopalian priest).&nbsp; 

This truly
authentic historic site is also home to a collection of artifacts, archives,
and genealogical material.&nbsp; Its artifact
collection includes a 14th century baptismal font donated by All Hallows
Church in London which was used to baptize William Penn in 1644, a 1769 pulpit
built by Thomas Folwell, communion silver presented by Queen Anne c. 1710, a
baptismal bowl by Philip Syng Sr. c. 1715 and a 1740 chandelier.&nbsp; Historian and author, David McCullough, said
of Christ Church, “No other church has played a more significant role in our
nation’s birth.”&nbsp; Given the fact that it
is visited by over 250,000 people annually, many others surely agree with his
assessment.&nbsp;

Built between the years 1727-1744, Christ Church, in Philadelphia’s Old Town, is more than just a first-rate example of Colonial Georgian architecture and historic site.  Known as the “Nation’s Church” due to the number of colonial leaders who worshipped there at one time or another, it is still an active Episcopalian parish.  It traces its origins back to 1695 when the parish formed as a colonial branch of the Church of England and has been faithfully serving its parishioners ever since.  It was added to the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark both in 1970.  It is open to the public on a daily basis and group tours are available. 

Christ Church, Philadelphia

Elizabeth “Betsy”
Griscom was born on January 1, 1752, the eighth of seventeen children. When she
was a teenager her family apprenticed her to a local upholsterer, where she met
fellow upholsterer apprentice John Ross. The two were married in 1773, and they
later moved to a home on Arch Street, where they set up an upholstery shop on
the first floor. The house was built sometime around 1740, with a rear section
added a decade or two later. Betsy and her husband rented the home from Hannah
Lithgow, who owned it and several others on the street. While the building at
239 Arch Street is considered to be where Betsy Ross lived, it is possible she
actually lived in one of the adjoining buildings. Betsy is believed to have
lived on Arch Street at least from 1776 to 1779.

Around 1776 Betsy’s
husband John died, allegedly from a gunpowder explosion while serving in the
Philadelphia militia. In 1777 she remarried to a sailor named Joseph Ashburn.
In 1781 his ship was captured by British forces, and he died in captivity a
year later. Betsy married again in 1783 to John Claypoole, an acquaintance of
Joseph who had known him in prison. Betsy continued running her upholstery
business for the next several decades, making flags and other products, before
finally retiring at age 76. She died in 1836 at the age of 84. She was
originally buried in a Quaker cemetery, and then later moved to a cemetery at
Mount Moriah. In 1975 the purported remains of Betsy and her third husband John
were exhumed and interred next to the Betsy Ross House, as part of the American
Bicentennial. 

It was not until 1870
that the story of Betsy Ross sewing the first American flag emerged. That year
William Canby, a grandson of Betsy, delivered a speech at the Historical
Society of Pennsylvania presenting the story. According to the account, in 1776
or 1777 Betsy Ross was approached by George Washington, Robert Morris, and George
Ross (uncle of her first husband John) and commissioned to sew the first
American flag. She was shown a proposed sketch of the flag, and made one
adjustment: she used five-pointed stars instead of six-pointed. After Canby’s
revelation, other descendants of Betsy Ross came forward claiming it to be true;
soon the story was circulating widely in pamphlets and books. Although there is
proof that Betsy Ross did make flags both during and after the American
Revolution, most scholars doubt that she sewed the first American flag. They cite a complete lack of evidence to
verify the story, and the fact that it did not come to light until nearly a
century after it allegedly happened. Nonetheless, the story soon became widely
accepted among the public, and Betsy Ross became an American icon. 

After the story of
Betsy Ross and the flag emerged, much attention was focused on her former home
and shop on Arch Street. Over the years it had housed a variety of businesses,
and by the late 1800s it was one of the only surviving colonial-era buildings
in the area. In the 1870s the building housed a tavern owned by the Mund
family, who used the Betsy Ross story to attract customers. In 1898 the
American Flag House and Betsy Ross Memorial Association was formed and
purchased the building to convert it into a museum. By 1937, the house was
severely dilapidated and in need of restoration. Philadelphia radio businessman
A. Atwater Kent contributed $25,000 to save the house. Historical architect Richardson
Brognard Okie was hired to implement the restoration; he utilized as much of
the home’s original components as possible, as well as historically-accurate
parts from demolished homes. The entire house was completed and opened to the
public on Flag Day, June 14, 1937. Two buildings to the west side of the house
were purchased and demolished to make a garden and courtyard. In 1941 the house
was given to the city of Philadelphia. An annex building was added in 1965, and
a fountain added to the courtyard in 1974. Historic Philadelphia Inc., a
nonprofit historical organization, assumed management of the property in 1995. &nbsp;

Today the Betsy Ross
House remains open to the public as a museum. Many rooms are furnished to
resemble their colonial America appearance. Items on display include personal possessions
of Betsy Ross, as well as memorabilia relating to the legend of her flag; the
museum also has an archival collection of documents available for research. Self-guided
and audio tours are available, and a Betsy Ross impersonator is often on site
to give demonstrations and engage with visitors. The museum hosts various
events and temporary exhibits throughout the year focusing mainly on the
American flag, upholstery, and women and life during eighteenth century
America. The courtyard and an indoor gallery are also available to rent for
different events.

The Betsy Ross House is a historic home in Philadelphia alleged to be the site where the first American flag was created. The Arch Street residence was built around 1740, and during the 1770s it was home to local upholsterer Elizabeth “Betsy” Ross. According to popular legend, Ross was asked to sew the first Stars and Stripes flag in 1777. Most scholars are highly doubtful that Betsy Ross actually made the first American flag; the story did not emerge until nearly a century later. Today the house has been restored and preserved as a museum. It is open to the public for tours, and contains a large collection of artifacts, documents, and memorabilia relating to both Betsy Ross and the story of her sewing the first flag. 

The Betsy Ross House

Running
parallel to Quarry and Arch Streets and perpendicular to Front and 2nd
Streets, Elfreth’s Alley was not
included in the original plans of Philadelphia.&nbsp;
It was created after landowners Arthur Wells and John Gilbert opened
their properties to allow local residents to pass to and fro.&nbsp; It slowly developed over the years until it
was paved with cobblestones and homes began to be constructed in the
1720s.&nbsp; It was named after local
Blacksmith, Jeremiah Elfreth.&nbsp; It soon
became home to local artisans and craftsmen, such as shipwrights, glassblowers,
carpenters, printers and furniture builders, many of which operated their
businesses from their homes.

The alley
was frequented by many famous Philadelphians, to include Ben Franklin who often
visited a friend, William Maugridge, who lived at 122.&nbsp; It was also home, for a time, to seamstress
Betsy Ross, Dolley Payne Todd Madison (prior to becoming First Lady) and
Stephen Girard who would go on to become the wealthiest man in the U.S. by the
early 19th century.&nbsp; The
industrial Revolution drastically changed the alley and surrounding neighborhood
as the homes were now occupied by immigrants working in the new factories that
encroached on the small alley.&nbsp; A stove
factory actually occupied several row houses within the alley in 1868.&nbsp; By 1900, Elfreth’s Alley’s residents were
overwhelmingly Irish.

By the early
20th century the alley and its buildings had fallen into a state of disrepair.&nbsp; Fortunately, it was saved from demolition on
more than one occasion by Dolly Ottey and the Elfreth’s Alley Association which
was founded in 1934.&nbsp; Ottey and other
association members worked tirelessly to preserve and restore the alley’s
buildings and historical legacy.&nbsp; The
greatest threat to the alley appeared in the early 1950s in the form of
Interstate 95, which now passes just east of the alley.&nbsp; The association was also instrumental in
getting the alley National Landmark status.&nbsp;


Elfreth’s
Alley now represents a rare and wonderful example of an 18th century
working class street that is in stark contrast to the restored mansions of the Society
Hill neighborhood.&nbsp; Some of the alley’s
private residences are open on two separate occasions within a year, during its
Fete Day celebration that takes place in early June and its Deck the Alley
holiday special in early December.&nbsp; The
Elfreth’s Alley museum sponsors group and self guided tours of its building as
well as the alley itself.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Tucked away in Philadelphia’s Old City there exists a small alley that gives visitors a glimpse of a working class, 18th century neighborhood.  Elfreth’s Alley, known as the nation’s oldest residential street, is a narrow thoroughfare with 32 small (by contemporary standards) residences built between 1728 and 1836 in the Federal or Georgian architectural style.  It began as a cart path in 1702 that permitted the city’s residents easy access to the docks.  It is now, in a sense, a living history museum that is still home to Philadelphians.  The museum is located in two row houses that were built in the mid-18th century and they now serve as a restored period home.  Elfreth’s Alley was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966.

Elfreth's Alley and Museum

Fireman’s
Hall occupies a firehouse that was once home to Engine Company Number Eight. It
can trace its history back to the Union Fire Company which was founded by Ben
Franklin in 1736.&nbsp; Engine Company Number
Eight called the building home from 1902 to 1952.&nbsp; The Hall presents over 300 years of
firefighting history that features numerous firefighting exhibits, artifacts, memorabilia,
and archives.

The biggest
attraction to Fireman’s Hall is, without a doubt, its ten antique fire trucks,
the oldest of which dates back to the early 19th century and
represent those that were powered by humans, horses, steam or gasoline.&nbsp; The Hall also features numerous firefighting
artifacts such as leather buckets, axes, clothing, badges and ladders.&nbsp; In addition, it has a large collection of
fire marks or plaques that were affixed to homes informing the fire companies
which insurance company insured the house.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Another popular if somber attraction is the Hall’s large stained-glass
window that serves to memorialize those Philadelphia firefighters that gave
their lives in the line of duty.&nbsp; The
memorial comes complete with names and dates.

Exhibits
within the Fireman’s Hall include one dedicated to the first responders of
9/11, one that covers Philadelphia’s “Great Fire” of 1839, and one entitled “Franklin’s
Volunteers” which is dedicated to Philadelphia’s early fire companies.&nbsp; Patrons can also visit the wheelhouse of an
actual fireboat and try on fire coats and boots.&nbsp;

Fireman’s Hall is a museum dedicated to the history of firefighters and firefighting in Philadelphia.  It is located in a former 1902 firehouse, complete with brass fire pole, within the city’s Old City.  It features numerous pieces of antique firefighting equipment and the second floor boasts a recreated firefighter’s recreational room and fire chief’s office.  It is operated and maintained by the Philadelphia Fire Department and its members serve as volunteer docents who care for and restore the equipment and conduct guided tours of the museum.

Philadelphia History Museum to Fireman's Hall

National Constitution Center

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information