Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence. Painting by Charles Willson Peale (c. 1791). Independence Hall collection.
Richard Henry Lee, whose momentous resolution adopted on July 2, 1776, was, in the words of John Adams, “the greatest question ... ever ... debated in America, and a greater, perhaps, never was nor will be decided among men.” Painting by Charles Willson Peale, 1784. Independence Hall collection.
George Washington. Painting by James Peale (c. 1787). Independence Hall collection.
State House as it appeared about 1776. Lithograph based on detail from painting by Charles Willson Peale (c. 1779). Courtesy Philadelphia Free Library.
During those critical years, the State House had served the new nation well as a capitol. As already noted, it was in this building that Congress had organized the national administration and made the necessary plans for carrying the war through to its successful conclusion. The Provincial Assembly of Pennsylvania, meanwhile, having graciously relinquished its accustomed room to Congress, had carried on as best it could in a crowded space on the second floor of the State House.
The occupation of Philadelphia by the British had been a period of distress not only for the American cause but for the State House as well. The building had first been used as quarters for British troops. After the battle of Germantown, it served as a hospital for wounded American soldiers.