Happy 4th of July! What a coincidence that our visit to Philadelphia is the subject of the blog today! It is a very patriotic place, indeed—the First Continental Congress met here, the Declaration of Independence was written and signed here, and it was frequented by influential characters in American history. But before we get into the historic sites, here are a few other things we saw.
The first place we toured was the College of Physicians Mutter Museum. It has a collection of skeletons, organs, and other preserved body parts that document disease. There were no pictures allowed inside, but I’ll give you a few highlights. We saw a wax model of a woman with a “horn” growing out of her head, a tumor removed from one of our presidents, and a real megacolon (Bilbo’s favorite).
The town itself was very clean, well meshed, and easy to navigate. We enjoyed a few minutes of just driving around and taking in the sites. Here’s a picture of City Hall taken from the car. The picture doesn’t do it justice. It was an enormous building with a statue of Benjamin Franklin (that’s was Bilbo’s guess, we really don’t know) on top and many smaller statues on the lower roof and ground.
After a parking place was found, we set off the Independence Mall (a National Park by the way) where we saw the places that began our nation. The first site was a surprise to us as it wasn’t listed in our travel guide—an atrocity if you ask me! We heard a man telling a story, so we walked over the see what it was all about. This was program present throughout the park called “Once Upon a Nation” where storytellers were waiting to enlighten you on the exciting events that happened at certain sites. Looking behind the storyteller, we saw a sign stating that this was the Carpenter’s Hall, where the First Continental Congress met! They even had the original chairs used in the meetings. Only the first floor of the building is open, so you don’t get to see the actual room where the meeting occurred. It was still fun to imagine our founding fathers walking through the doors and across the lobby floor as they made their way to their world-changing assembly.
Very near to the Carpenter’s Hall is the Second Bank of the United States. The building no longer functions as a bank but has been renovated to house the portrait gallery of Charles Willson Peale. This Peale was not just any artist with an exhibit of patriotic figures. He was the preferred artist of those political figures living in Philadelphia during the Revolution. All of the pictures are the copies of the originals that he made for his private collection. Below is a line-up of some of his most famous clientele (George Washington, Martha Washington, James Adams, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson).
Next is one of my favorites…the Liberty Bell. It Originally hung in Independence Hall (the Philadelphia City Hall during the Revolution and site of the Second Continental Congress), but was removed and preserved for providence sake after a large crack formed. It is now hanging in the Liberty Bell Center, a small museum dedicated to the history of the famous bell.
Another site that was a surprise to us was the Declaration House. This was just an average house owned by a local working man, a brick layer I think. The event that entered it into history was Thomas Jefferson renting the upper rooms while he wrote the Declaration of Independence. The rooms are now set up as they may have been during that time and an informational video is played when you enter.
Finally, the site that I was most excited about, Independence Hall! We almost missed seeing this monumental location because we didn’t know that you have to reserve tickets. The tickets are free, they are just used to control the heavy volume of tourists coming to see the site. If you ever go to Philadelphia make sure you go to the visitor center as soon as possible on the morning you wish to see Independence Hall or you may not get a ticket! You can also reserve a ticket through the National Park Service website for a $1.50 reservation fee per person. That’s what we did after missing it the first day. The room seen below is the chamber in which the ultimate act of treason was committed to give birth to the USA. I had always imagined that it happened in some clandestine corner where the men would not be discovered, but no. The Second Congressional Congress met right in the main meeting chamber of the town hall. Maybe it was more secure than I imagine, but I think that was very brazen of them. Especially since the courtroom is right across the hall!
That was the final site on our Philadelphia tour, so it was time to set our course to New England. Next time, we’ll tell you about our whirlwind tour of Connecticut, Springfield, Massachusetts, and Vermont. Enjoy your fireworks tonight and be thankful for the freedom in which we live! God bless America!
