Other changes to the State House followed as a result of the City’s desire to adapt it for current needs. The Assembly Room, in which the Declaration of Independence had been adopted, was converted into a court room. This was “modernized” by the removal of its paneling and the substitution of plaster and paint. Furthermore, the Chestnut Street doorway was replaced by a more ornate one, which was wholly out of keeping with the simple dignity of the structure.
City election at Independence Hall. Elections were held at Independence Hall throughout the Colonial period and for many years thereafter. From a painting by J. L. Krimmel (c. 1815). Courtesy Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
The first occupant after the State government moved to Lancaster was Charles Willson Peale, who, in 1802, received permission to use the upper floor of the State House (including the tower rooms) and the Assembly Room on the first floor, for his museum which had occupied Philosophical Hall since 1794. By the terms of the agreement, Peale was responsible for the maintenance of both the building and the State House Yard.
In order to make the building more suitable for his museum, Peale removed the alterations made in 1778-79 to accommodate the Assembly, and rebuilt the long room to appear as it did during the Colonial period. The museum, which occupied the second floor of the State House until 1828, included not only an extensive collection of natural history items but also a unique portrait gallery of the great men of this Nation, painted largely by Charles Willson Peale and his son, Rembrandt. Peale also took most seriously his charge to care for the State House Yard, or Garden, as Independence Square was then known. He planted trees, added new gates and benches, and improved the walls and lawns. It was most fortunate that a man of Peale’s caliber was responsible for the property’s care during this dark period.
Plan showing use of Independence Hall by the City of Philadelphia and the Federal Courts. From Philadelphia in 1824. Courtesy American Philosophical Society.
PLAN OF THE STATE HOUSE. Second Floor {East Wing} Common Council Select Council Watering Committee Grand Jury Room Guardians of the Poor White Witness Room Black Witness Room Prothonotary office for the District of the City & County MUSEUM Mammoth Room Lecture Room Quadruped Room Stairs to the Marine Room Long Room Clerk of the U. S. Court Marshalls Office County Commissioners Auditors Office {West Wing} Circuit Court Controller of Public Schools Law Library Supreme Court First Floor {East Wing} Mayors Office Mayors’ Private Room City Comms City Treasr Clerk of the Mayors Court Recorder of Deeds Register of Wills. Prothonotary of Supre Court Court Room Entrance to the Museum &c. Mayors Court. Prothonotary of Comn Pleas Sheriffs Office Clerk of Orphans Court Clerk of Quarter-Sessions {West Wing} Common Pleas District Court
After Peale’s museum moved from the State House in 1827-28, the second floor was rented to the United States Government for judicial purposes. Alterations were made under the direction of the architect, John Haviland, to adapt the space for its new use. The long room was again obliterated, and the western portion of the upper floor was made into one large room for the use of the United States Circuit and District Courts. The partitions in the eastern portion apparently were retained; the northern room became the jury room for the court and the southern room, the office of its clerk. This occupancy of the State House by Federal courts continued until 1854. Consolidation of the city and districts in that year made more room necessary for city offices, and the Federal courts were forced to move. Their place was taken over by City Councils. The court room on the west was occupied by the Common Council. On the east, the partition between the former offices of the court clerks was removed, and a single room was fitted for the Select Council. These Councils occupied the upper floor until 1895.
