September 10, 2023

September 10, 2023

We returned to downtown Philadelphia, PA again this morning in rainy weather. We parked and dashed inside Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site to learn about this famous American author. Poe’s passion was poetry, but found he had to write short stories to make a living. He practically invented the detective novel with stories like 'The Murders in the Rue Morgue'.

The rain has stopped so we drove across town to the Franklin Institute, the local science museum. In the lobby is Benjamin Franklin National Memorial. Here sits an enormous 20-foot statue of this famous printer, scientist, and Founding Father.

We then drove to the Independence Hall area to explore more of this National Historic Park. Our first stop is The President's House Site. This was the Presidential Mansion for Washington and Adams. It was torn down long ago, but archeological excavations uncovered the foundation. Now it is an outdoor museum with displays on the fight for freedom.

We then crossed the street to watch the park movie. Afterwards we walked the area visiting Carpenters Hall where the First Continental Congress met. We also toured the Second Bank of the US which contains a Portrait Gallery of the famous from the Revolutionary Era. Most were painted by Charles Wilson Peale, who made them for his exhibition inside Independence Hall. It was the first public museum in America. At a time before photography it was probably the only way ordinary people might see what these famous men and women looked like.

We were getting hungry so we went to the same pizza restaurant in Society Hill as yesterday. It is looking like rain again so we punted and drove to the suburbs to watch the new movie, Oppenheimer. In the spirit of staying with our national park tour theme, I am considering it an essential part of Manhattan Project National Historical Park.