Carpenters’ Hall – History of Philadelphia

‘Key Meeting Place of the First Continental Congress’

Carpenters’ Hall is a historic building in Old City Philadelphia that is also part of Independence National Historical Park. This building was part of the start of our Independence as we know it today.

History of Carpenters’ Hall

Carpenters’ Hall was built in 1770 and completed in 1773 by the Carpenters’ Company. It was first used as a meeting site by the guild in 1771 and would continue to hold annual meetings there until the British captured Philadelphia in 1777.

The building was used by the First Continental Congress from September 5 to October 26, 1774,  since Independence Hall was being used by the moderate Provincial Assembly of Pennsylvania. It was here that Congress resolved to ban further imports of slaves and to discontinue the slave trade within the colonies.

Carpenters’ Hall has a long history as a meeting place and has been the home to numerous tenants in the arts, sciences and commerce. The building also served as a hospital for both the British and American troops in the Revolutionary War.

It was declared a National Landmark in 1970.

Carpenters’ Hall Experience

At Carpenters’ Hall, there has been a lot of history that has flowed through this building in its early stages of existence. Such stories as Chevalier Julien-Alexandre Achard de Bonvouloir, a French spy, and his secret meeting with Benjamin Franklin at Carpenters’ Hall that led to the French Alliance. Washington’s Army, the Continental Army, had march passed Carpenters’ Hall twice. Once prior to defeat and once prior to victory.

The Hall has served as a library, as a meeting place for the First Continental Congress, home to its first secretary, Henry Knox, and as a bank at one time. The building was most useful for the First Continental Congress because it offered greater secrecy, in which at one point, voted to support a trade embargo against England.

Carpenters’ Hall is part of Independence National Historical Park today.  It is still owned and operated by The Carpenters’ Company of the City and County of Philadelphia, the oldest trade guild in America, since 1770.

Location

320 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106

Hours

Tuesday – Sunday  |  10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Closed on Mondays  |  Closed on Tuesdays during January & February

Phone

(215) 925-0167

Web Site

• Carpenters’ Hall