Well, we finally made it into Philadelphia for a visit. We’ve been putting it off all summer and now was the time. Barb found a great Groupon for the “Hop On- Hop Off” tour bus, so we braved the weather forecast (60% chance of rain) and headed out. Joining the morning commuters we arrived at City center and found a place to park. For the life of me, I don’t know why anyone would want to face that drive twice a day?!? Most of the historic sites in this area are free admission, but you need to get a timed assignment ticket in order to tour Independence Hall. So our first stop was the ticket desk at the Visitor’s Center. We asked for, and got, two tickets for the 2:00 tour so we were set.
We next went out and found our bus stop (for the hop on-hop off) and boarded the 9:45 run. There were only four of us on the bus! Made for a nice personal tour. Usually they run an open top double decker bus, but because of the weather they were in a single story trolley. This limited some of the pictures we could get, but was still a good way to get an overview of the sights. After 90 minutes, we “hopped off” the bus where we boarded and headed to the Visitor’s Center area to view the Liberty Bell. We had determined that there were far too many things to see than we had time for, so we concentrated on the colonial history in the city center.
But in a nod towards more modern day sights, a visit to Philly isn’t complete without seeing the steps made famous from the “Rocky” movies.
Many folks run up the stairs then turn around and simulate the arms up pose from the movie. Our tour guide said that locals had a name for those people... tourists.
In this view you can see the Comcast building (tallest one in the frame). For decades there was a “gentlemen’s agreement” that said that no building would be taller than the statue of William Penn that sits atop City Hall (the small figure at the top of the tower in the photo below. The statue itself is actually 40 feet high!).
Well, in 1987 a building was built that towered over City Hall and the “Curse of William Penn” began. The professional sports teams of Philly had been enjoying unknown success up until that time. Now that a building stood taller than Mr. Penn, they couldn’t win much of anything! When the Comcast Building was finished in 2007, a small 4” statue of William Penn was put atop the building by local Iron Workers and lo! and behold, the Phillies won the World Series in 2008! The Curse had been lifted and Mr. Penn once again rose taller than anything else in the City.
Here is the view of Independence Hall. They are working on the bell tower, hence the scaffolding.
Inside, the room where both the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution were debated and signed. George Washington presided over the arguments over the Constitution and sat in the chair along the back wall.
Note the sunburst at the top of Washington’s chair. Story has it that Ben Franklin stated, when the Constitution was finally agreed upon, something to the effect that “I have looked at that chair for some time now and wondered if the sun was rising or setting. I now know that it is rising.”
Upstairs, above the signature room, is infrequently open to visitors. Today happened to be one of those days. Here, the governor of Pennsylvania once had his office. There is a long banquet room alongside that runs the length of the building that was used for dinners and celebrations. During the British occupation of Philadelphia during the Revolutionary war, it was used as a hospital for wounded Colonial officers.
Down the road from Independence Hall is the City Tavern. Here, the founding fathers and local townsfolk would gather to discuss events of the day and debate the mis-dealings of the King. Today, as then, it is a fine colonial restaurant.
Those who watch our Facebook page know that I couldn’t resist trying the Founding Fathers Beer Sampler (aka: Ales of the Revolution). They are (in order from left to right in the picture): Alexander Hamilton’s Federalist Ale; pale ale with a citrus aftertaste--not my favorite, but was good. Ben Franklin’s Tavern Spruce; based on Franklin’s recipe, the last one used very little hops but instead used spruce needles! Had a unique flavor but not bad at all. Thomas Jefferson’s Tavern Ale followed an original recipe; Jefferson made beer twice a year using this formula. It was very smooth and had a great taste. Last was George Washington’s Tavern Porter; this beer is made exclusively for City Tavern and is based on a recipe on file in the Rare Manuscripts Room of the New York Library. Not as stout as Guinness but full bodied and very smooth. Luckily it was a long walk to the car after drinking all of that!
We encountered a brief downpour just outside of Christ Church so we took the opportunity to wander around. This church was founded on this spot in 1695 and had over 800 parishioners by 1726. It was enlarged beginning in 1727. The steeple and bells were added in 1754 paid for from lotteries organized by Ben Franklin. Franklin, Washington, Betsy Ross, and 15 signers of the Declaration of Independence worshipped here.
Washington's pew in the Church.
William Penn was baptized using this baptismal.
The nation’s oldest residential street, Elfreth’s Alley. This is the longest continually occupied residence in the country. Folks have lived here since 1702 and continue to still today.
The home of Betsy Ross is flanked by modern buildings of downtown. Betsy is buried in the courtyard to the left of the home in this picture.
Across the street from the Ross house is Humphrys Flag Company. The flag that flies on the moon was made by these folks. They make a wide variety of flags to sell to the public. I don’t think that the location is a coincidence.
Along the edge of the Christ Church cemetery is the grave of Benjamin Franklin. Here he is buried with his common-law wife and young son.
We were fortunate; only one brief rain shower imposed on us, and we made the best of that. We enjoyed ourselves and, as usual, relished the opportunity to see places and objects that we had read so much about. I leave you with the small error that I found on the Liberty Bell. The makers of the bell forgot to Google the correct spelling of Pennsylvania before casting the bell. Guess it’s too late to change that now...
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