Friday, October 15, 2010

Visit to Philadelphia



The Liberty Bell
The line to go inside was way long - but we did manage to get a couple pictures from the outside.


United States Mint
They also make the Purple Heart Medals here.


Benjamin Franklin




Arch Street Meetinghouse

Besty Ross House
It was built over 250 years ago. The front portion was built around 1740, with the stair hall and the rear section added 10 to 20 years later. It has one room on each floor and a winding staircase from the cellar to the upper levels.
They told us that most of the homes were only 16 feet wide then longer and several floors because they were taxed by the amount of feet that faced the street.

Not sure if you can see it - but in the window is a mirror so that they could see who was at the door.



Elfreth's Alley
Popularly known as "Our nation's oldest residential street." Thirty-two houses built between 1728 and 1836 line the alley



The Philadelphia Exchange

The Philadelphia’s (Merchants’) Exchange opened in 1834. Merchants, manufacturers, brokers, and shipmasters all gathered here to trade stocks and commodities, and to learn the latest business news. The building has been restored only on the exterior and is not open to the public.


This kind of looks like gravel - but is a stone road.




Carpenter's Hall


Benjamin Franklin's house was torn down in the early 1800s. They have marked where the home would have been and have stones marked (as above) where different parts of the house would have been as close as they can estimate.


The frame represents where the original print shop would have been.




This area is called Franklin Court. This is a working post office where you can send letters hand-stamped with Franklin's original postmark.





General Advertiser - Ben Franklin Publisher


We decided that we should visit Philadelphia and check out some of the history there. We went on a walking tour. It was very informational and fun. These are some of the places we went to.