Independence National Historical Park, Philadelphia, Pa.

by Edward M. Riley

NO. 9. FIRST BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, on the west side of South Third Street, between Walnut and Chestnut Streets. Built between 1795 and 1797, this structure is probably the oldest bank building in the United States. The First Bank of the United States was established as part of the comprehensive program developed by Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, to rectify the disordered state of Government finances. The building, with its interesting classical facade, was occupied by the First Bank of the United States until the expiration of its charter in 1811. In the following year, the building was purchased by Stephen Girard, the wealthy merchant of Philadelphia, who opened his bank there. Now the office of the Board of Directors of City Trusts, the building is open to the public from 9 a. m. to 4 p. m. daily, except Saturday and Sunday.

NO. 10. CARPENTERS’ HALL, 320 Chestnut Street. In September 1774, when the delegates to the first Continental Congress came to Philadelphia, they chose to meet in Carpenters’ Hall rather than the State House. The Hall, built in 1770, was the guild hall of the Carpenters’ Company of Philadelphia, founded in 1724. In 1773, the building was also occupied by the Library Company of Philadelphia, whose books were used by the Continental Congress. Following the Revolution, the building was rented for many purposes by the Carpenters’ Company. In 1857, they repaired the Hall and opened it as a historic shrine. The building and its grounds, still maintained by the Carpenters’ Company of Philadelphia, is a part of Independence National Historical Park under a cooperative agreement with the Department of the Interior and is open daily, except Sunday and Monday, from 9 a. m. to 4 p. m. free of charge.

NO. 11. FRANKLIN COURT (site of Benjamin Franklin’s home), on Orianna Street, south of Market Street. In this court, entered through a picturesque archway on Market Street, stood the imposing brick house of Benjamin Franklin from 1765 to 1812. Until 1785, Franklin lived in the house for only a year, since he served as Provincial agent in England from 1764 to 1775 and as a Commissioner to France from 1776 to 1785. In 1776, however, he served on the committee named by the Continental Congress to draft the Declaration of Independence. Franklin had an important part in the successful negotiation of the Treaty of Alliance between France and the United States, in 1778, which was largely responsible for the success of the Revolution. Upon his return to Philadelphia, he was elected President of Pennsylvania, and, in 1787, he was a delegate to the Federal Constitutional Convention. After a long and worthy life, Benjamin Franklin died in his home on April 17, 1790, at the age of 84. The house was demolished about 20 years after his death.

NOS. 12 AND 13. CHRIST CHURCH, on west side of Second Street, north of Market Street, and CEMETERY, at Fifth and Arch Streets. Founded in 1695 and built between 1727 and 1754, Christ Church, one of the most famous churches in America, had in its congregation many leading figures of the Revolution, including Washington, Franklin, Robert Morris, and Francis Hopkinson. Architecturally, the building, with its 200-foot steeple, is a monument to colonial craftsmanship—one of the largest and most beautiful structures in 18th-century America. Ecclesiastically, Christ Church is famous as the scene of the post-Revolutionary organization of the Episcopal Church. Its rector, William White, was the first Bishop of Pennsylvania and the second American prelate. Seven signers of the Declaration of Independence, as well as four signers of the Constitution, are buried at the church and in the cemetery. Franklin’s grave is at the corner of Fifth and Arch Streets. The preservation of the church is assured by a cooperative agreement made in 1950 between the Department of the Interior and the Corporation of Christ Church. The church and grounds are open to the public from 9 a. m. to 5 p. m.

NO. 14. GLORIA DEI (OLD SWEDES’) CHURCH, at Swanson Street and Delaware Avenue, is the oldest church building in Pennsylvania. The present structure, erected in 1700, replaced a log church built in 1677. The Swedes preceded the English to this part of the New World and began the Gloria Dei congregation in 1646. For almost two centuries this church was under the Swedish hierarchy, but after the Scandinavians had been absorbed into the general American population, Gloria Dei applied for admission into the Episcopal Church and was received by the Bishop of Pennsylvania in 1845. Swedish treasures are plentiful in the church to this day: many old documents and books; carved cherubim (imported in 1643); and the baptismal font. The church is nine blocks south from Market Street to Christian Street, then east to Delaware Avenue. Assurance that the church will be preserved unchanged is given in a cooperative agreement with the Department of the Interior. It is open to the public from 9 a. m. to 5 p. m. daily.

NO. 15. DESHLER-MORRIS HOUSE, 5442 Germantown Avenue. President Washington lived in this house during the fall of 1793 and summer of 1794. It may be considered the oldest “White House” standing. Erected by David Deshler in 1772-73, it was bought in 1792 by Col. Isaac Franks, who had served in the Revolutionary War. The latter rented it to Washington, who moved out of Philadelphia during the yellow fever epidemic of 1793. Bequeathed by the Morris family to the United States Government in 1949, the house has been restored and is today exhibited by the Germantown Historical Society in cooperation with the National Park Service. It is open daily except Monday, from 2 p. m. to 5 p. m., with an admission fee of 25 cents for adults and 10 cents for children. The house may be reached by public or private transportation: north on Fifth Street to Germantown Avenue, then northwest about 3.5 miles.