Independence National Historical Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Our final destination for the day was Independence National Historical Park, also in Downtown Philadelphia.

Independence National Historical Park encompasses dozens of historical buildings directly relating to the founding of the United States.

One such building pictured here, Independence Hall, was the site of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

The most famous ringing of the Liberty Bell occurred on July 8, 1776, summoning Philadelphia citizens for the reading of the Declaration.

The Liberty Bell first cracked during its initial testing outside the Pennsylvania State House.

A second crack appeared some time later and was repaired in 1846. That same repaired crack grew on February 22, 1846 when the bell tolled for several hours in honor of George Washington's birthday.

Following the growth of the crack in 1846, the bell was no longer usable.

The Liberty Bell hung in this bell tower for its first 100 years.

In 1852, it was removed from the bell tower and placed on display in the "Declaration Chamber" of Independence Hall.

The American Flag flies high above Independence National Historical Park.

In the 1770s, Independence Hall was known as the Pennsylvania State House and housed the Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chamber.

Prisoners stood in the dock pictured here throughout the course of their court proceedings. Thus, the expression "standing trial" originated.

Across the hall from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chamber sits the Pennsylvania Assembly Room. The Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were both signed here.

A famous guy and a not-so-famous guy pose in front of Independence Hall.

Watch a short carriage ride down the cobble-stoned street in front of Independence Hall in the last part of this video.

The U.S. flag Lincoln raised on this spot in 1861 had 34 stars. At the time, Kansas was the newest state to be admitted into the Union.

A short walk down the street we came across the Ben Franklin House.

Originally opened in 1925 as the Benjamin Franklin Hotel, Doug and his family stayed here during the Bicentennial celebration of 1976.

During the mid-1980s the hotel was converted to an apartment building.

Carpenters' Hall is a showcase for 18th century building trades and design. The buildings were closed by this time, but this courtyard view was kind of neat.
Here stands the First Bank of the United States restored to its 1790s appearance. It functioned much like a modern Federal Reserve Bank.

For more pictures, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/june/philadelphia/ pictures 109-158.

To be continued...