Independence Hall
Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers. The structure forms the centerpiece of the Independence National Historical Park and was designated a World Heritage Site in 1979.[3]
For other uses, see Independence Hall (disambiguation).Independence Hall
520 Chestnut Street between 5th and 6th Streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
William Strickland (steeple)
645,564 (in 2005[1])
Cultural
vi
1979 (3rd session)
October 15, 1966
66000683[2]
The building was completed in 1753 as the Pennsylvania State House. It served as the first capitol of both the United States and of the Province and later the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It was the principal meeting place of the Second Continental Congress from 1775 to 1781, and was the site of the Constitutional Convention, at which the U.S. Constitution, the longest-standing written and codified national constitution in the world, was ratified on June 21, 1788.[4]
A convention held in Independence Hall in 1915, presided over by former U.S. president William Howard Taft, marked the formal announcement of the formation of the League to Enforce Peace, which led to the League of Nations in 1920 and the United Nations in 1945, a quarter century later.[5]
Independence Hall in 1799, with the wooden steeple removed
The Governor's Council Chamber
The Supreme Court Room
Tower Stair Hall
League to Enforce Peace[edit]
The symbolic use of the hall was illustrated on June 17, 1915, where the League to Enforce Peace was formed here with former President William Howard Taft presiding. They proposed an international governing body under which participating nations would commit to "jointly...use...their economic and military forces against any one of their number making war against another" and "to formulate and codify rules of international law".[25]
1956 U.S. postal stamp
1974 U.S. postal stamp
U.S. $2 bill
