City of Brotherly Love, home of the Philadelphia Phillies, the Philadelphia Cheesesteak, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, the Philadelphia Flyers, Independence Hall, the Barnes Foundation, Rocky, and American Bandstand.
Our nation's 5th largest city is but a short drive from our campsite in Chester County and the Brandywine River Valley. Joyce is our tour guide for the day. We decided to let someone else drive and search for parking spots today!
William Penn received his charter for Pennsylvania from Charles II of England in 1681, and in November 1682 divided Pennsylvania into three counties: Philadelphia, Chester and Bucks. Penn wanted Philadelphia, meaning "brotherly love", to be a place where religious tolerance and the freedom to worship were guaranteed.
Interestingly enough, Philadelphia's name is shared with the ancient Asia Minor city spared in the Book of Revelation in the Bible. William Penn prayed that as a Quaker, his "Holy Experiment" would be found blameless at the Last Judgment. First known as Penn's Woods, the colony was later named Pennsylvania, 'sylvan' meaning woods. I never made that connection, duh!
Independence Hall is our first stop and we get tickets for a 10:15 a.m. entry. In the meantime, we stroll around the buildings that make up Independence Square. The Great Essentials, in the West Wing, displays, in very low light to protect original, fragile documents: the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, and Constitution. I especially relish the quote by James Madison, 'If all men were angels, there would be no need for government.' Exactly, methinketh! Also on display is the Independence Inkstand, crafted by silversmith Philip Syng, for Pennsylvania's colonial government, believed to be the one used to sign both the Declaration and the Constitution!
The name "Great Essentials" refers to a quote from John Adams:
"But I find, although the colonies have differed in religion, laws, customs, and manners, yet in the great essentials of society and government they are all alike."
(John Adams to Abigail Adams, July 10, 1776.)
Jo Ann, a 'saucy' Louisianan National Park Services Ranger, is our guide for the tour of Independence Hall. Abigail Adams admonished her husband, John, not to forget the female gender in all of the goings on in Philadelphia wherein he dubbed her 'saucy'! Often called 'The Cradle of Liberty' we are enthralled as Ranger Jo Ann passionately relates the chain of events, complete with documents.
It was on June 14, 1775, that delegates of the Continental Congress nominated George Washington as commander of the Continental Army in the Assembly Room of the Pennsylvania State House.
The Congress appointed Benjamin Franklin to be the first Postmaster General of what would later become the United States Post Office Department on July 26.
The United States Declaration of Independence was approved here on July 4, 1776, and the Declaration was read aloud to the public in the area now known as Independence Square. It unified the colonies in North America who declared themselves independent of the Kingdom of Great Britain and explained their justifications in the action.
The rooms are beautiful and have been restored to look just as they did in 1776. 52 layers of paint were painstakinly removed until the original was discovered. After the Declaration of Independence was adopted, the ornate coat of arms of King George III was uncerimoniously removed and evidently made a wonderful bonfire!
It was in this Assembly Room, as the heated debates of the Constitutional Convention raged on and on, that Benjamin Franklin, aged 81 and afflicted with a variety of maladies, but nevertheless, an active participant in the proceedings every day, spoke those famous words as he gazed upon the painted image carved on the chair used by George Washington. Was it a sun representing the dawn of a new day, or dusk with darkness descending on the land? 'Now,' he announced when the Constitution was approved and signed on September 17, 'I have the happiness to know that it is a rising, not a setting sun.'
We just had to partake of Philadelphia's most famous culinary creation, the Philly Cheesesteak! Joyce recommends Campo's Cheesesteaks, just across the street from Christ Church. Delish!
It is the Olivieri brothers, Pat and Harry, who operated a hot dog and sandwich stand in the 30's who get the credit for its invention. One day, Pat and Harry decide to make a steak sandwich for themselves for lunch using onions. A cab driver comes in and when he notices what they are cooking asks to have one. Presto! The first Philly cheese steak is invented! It has no cheese and costs a nickel. It isn't until the 60's that Cheese Whiz becomes an additional topping. Today, American and provolone cheese are the most common cheeses used. Yumm-oh!
'No other church has played a more significant role in our nation’s birth', according to historian David McCullough. Christ Church was founded in 1695 as a condition of William Penn’s Charter. It was at Christ Church that 25% of Philadelphia’s free and enslaved Africans were baptized, a school was created to educate slaves, and the first black priest, Absalom Jones, was ordained. A prayer book is prominently displayed with margin notes and cross-throughs which obliterate all mention of the King.
During the Revolutionary era, Christ Church was the worship place for the Continental Congresses. Benjamin and Deborah Franklin and Betsy Ross were parishioners. Later, George Washington and John Adams attended services while they were the nation’s Chief Executives. It was here that the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States was created from what remained of the Church of England.
Seven signers of the Declaration of Independence and five signers of the Constitution are buried here.
Driving along the brick, cobblestone, and ballast rock streets lined with Colonial-style rowhouses shaded by lovely oaks providing an arbor over the narrow roadways, Joyce tells us that the colonists were afraid of the wilderness, thus they built the houses close together.
Many are only a door and window wide, since the King taxed them on the width of the structure.
Tamanend, the "affable" (c. 1628–1698) was a chief of one of the clans that made up the Lenni-Lenape nation in the Delaware Valley when Philadelphia was settled. Tamanend, a peaceful leader who valued friendship, played a prominent role in establishing peaceful relations among the Native American tribes and the English settlers, led by William Penn, who believed in treating the tribes in a respectful manner. This magnificent statue, located between Old City and Penn's Landing, the riverfront area, has a plaque that reads "Tamanend was considered the patron saint of America by the colonists prior to American Independence."
Valley Forge is the last stop of a long day. Located 20 miles northwest of Philadelphia, where an iron forge once existed, it is the site chosen for the winter encampment of the Continental Army in the winter and spring of 1777 -78. Armies during that era, hunkered down for the winter months, planning strategies, and training the troops. They chose Valley Forge because it enabled Washington to keep a close eye on the British forces and be ready in case of a surprise attack.
Instead of the miserable, ragtag, disorganized army often depicted, the Continental Army was a skilled and capable force, having been trained rather well by Baron Von Steuben, of Prussia. Disease, not starvation or cold, appears to have been the most serious problem that winter with 2/3 of the 2,000 men who died perishing from flu, typhus, typhoid, and dysentery.
Each soldier helped construct his hut, one shared by eleven others. Made of rough hewn timber, still they provide decent shelter from the cold. Under the direction of military engineers, the men eventually build a city of 2,000-odd huts laid out in parallel lines along planned military avenues. The troops also construct miles of trenches, five earthen forts (redoubts), and a state-of-the-art bridge over the Schuylkill River.
Washington's headquarters is in a small stone farmhouse that he shares with 24 others. His aide-de-camps include such future superstars as the Marquis de Lafayette, like a son to Washington, and Alexander Hamilton.
Seeing Washington's office, running my hand along the same bannister that he must have touched, walking the same grounds as so many historic figures....goosebumps, I tell ya', goosebumps!
Chester County, Pennsylvania, is horse country. Steeple chases, horse farms, equestrian events, bridal paths, rolling green hills, stone houses dating back to colonial times, covered bridges...this quaint area is breathtaking! Located between Philly and Lancaster, it a perfect location for a week-long encampment!
No comments:
Post a Comment