The Philadelphia Stock exchange. It was the first one to be established in United States in 1790. Love the grandeur and the columns.
One of the many hotels in downtown. Again, the columns and archways fascinate me.
The Independence Hall where the discussions and debates and the final signing of constitution of America took place. 
The Philadelphia Bourse, opened in 1895 and was the first commodities exchange in United states. Today, it is one of Philadelphia’s leading commercial complexes, home to 24 retail and food service stores and more than 50 businesses.
People think that Betsy Ross made the American flag, but it's not totally for sure. She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on January 1, 1752. More about Betsy Ross here.
One of the six mints in United States, is located in Philadelphia and it only makes coins and no bills. The architecture disappointed me here!
Oldest living street in United States is Elfreth's Alley and is in Philadelphia. It about 300 years old. "Only??" Ask people from Europe!!
Benjamin Franklin Bridge built over the Delaware river, what a beauty! It connects Philadelphia with New jersey. Construction started in 1922 but soon after a dispute arose between
New Jersey and Philadelphia. New Jersey wanted tollbooths on the bridge while Pennsylvania wanted the bridge to be free, using tax money to pay for the construction. Works on the bridge even halted for some time until eventually Pennsylvania agreed to construct tollbooths. it finally opened to traffic in 1926 but was given its present name only in 1956.
This is the Liberty Bell. When William Penn created Pennsylvania's government he allowed citizens to take part in making laws and gave them the right to choose the religion they wanted. The colonists were proud of the freedom that Penn gave them. In 1751, the Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly ordered a new bell for the State House. He asked that a Bible verse to be placed on the bell - "Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the inhabitants thereof" (Leviticus 25:10). As the official bell of the Pennsylvania State House (today called Independence Hall) it rang many times for public announcements. The old State House bell was first called the "Liberty Bell" by a group trying to outlaw slavery. These abolitionists remembered the words on the bell and, in the 1830s, adopted it as a symbol of their cause.
Philadelphia City Center has a eclectic mix of old and new architecture and it gives Philadelphia its unique look and style.
Gorgeous Philadelphia City Hall. It boasts to be the largest, tallest and the most expensive of all the city halls in United States. It took 30 years to be ready and no steel frames were used in the construction which is why the walls on the first floor are up to 22 ft thick to support the weight of the floors above.
Yes, you can thank me now for presenting a long lesson about Philadelphia! I am sure I must have missed many things but then who said you can get to know everything by just reading one book ;-)
More to come in next post about things in Philadelphia and that have nothing to do with Ben Franklin!
Got to know so many things about Philadelphia(Is It called philly for short?). CAn feel the strength of the buildings through the pictures. Good clicks.
ReplyDeleteYes Asha, Philly is its nick name!
ReplyDelete//Only??" Ask people from Europe!!//
ReplyDeleteHa ha :)
Laughed through this post, loved your captions, and "thank you for the long lesson" we are moving to the second book now :)
Haven't been to Philly yet, and may not go there for a vacation, either. But I'm sure the downtown is pretty old and some history attached to it (as much history as NYC may have).
ReplyDeleteBtw, 300 years is pretty old for a street even in Europe if the buildings around it, and the public properties (like the light posts, original stones of the pavement etc) are well preserved. Varanasi may have a lot of lanes that are pretty old. But we haven't preserved the things well.
@IHM: I enjoyed my time there! Glad you liked it.
ReplyDelete@Raja: Varanasi is beautiful but not preserved as you said.