Carpenters' Hall of Philadelphia
Carpenters' Hall is a treasure in historic Philadelphia. It hosted the First Continental Congress in 1774 and was home to Franklin's Library Company, The American Philosophical Society, and the First and Second Banks of the United States. For upcoming events and public programming, please click here.
Interested in celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the First Continental Congress? Visit our events page for ways to celebrate with us! Also, join us Saturday’s and Sunday’s from Saturday, September 6th to Sunday, October 26th for live reenactments of scenes exploring the themes and debates of the First Continental Congress. For more information on these scenes and a full schedule, click here.
Join us on Saturday, September 7th at 11am for a PUBLIC READING OF THE FIRST PRAYER IN CONGRESS
Carpenters’ Court in front of Carpenters’ Hall at 320 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia
On September 7, 1774, Rev. Jacob Duché delivered a rousing invocation/prayer at Carpenters' Hall before the Founding Fathers at the First Continental Congress.
Exactly 250 years later, Carpenters' Hall will mark this moment – which set a precedent for prayer in Congress that continues to this day – with a free public reading of the invocation by Rectors Samantha Vincent-Alexander of Christ Church and Sarah Hedgis-Kligerman of St. Peter’s Church (Rev. Duché was the Rector of these historic congregations, which were allied during Revolutionary times).
Following the brief reading outside at 11 a.m., attendees will be welcomed into Carpenters’ Hall to explore the historic site and see two versions of a famous painting depicting Rev. Duché and the delegates in Carpenters’ Hall.
This event concludes a two-part series that considers prayer and religion in American government and civic culture. On September 5, Carpenters’ Hall hosts nine faith leaders to discuss and debate this topic (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-best-and-surest-foundation-tickets-953656902467?aff=oddtdtcreator). The series helps commemorate the 250th anniversary of Carpenters’ Hall and The First Continental Congress, and the 300th anniversary of The Carpenters’ Company of The City and County of Philadelphia.
While it is free to attend this event, please RSVP here.
Stick around after the reading for the start of Building Independence, live reenactments of scenes exploring the topics debated by the First Continental Congress delegates in 1774. Running from September 7th to Sunday, October 27th, the scenes will be performed at 11am, 1pm, or 3pm.
NOW RUNNING:
CONSTRUCTING KNOWLEDGE: 300 YEARS OF THE CARPENTERS’ COMPANY OF THE CITY AND COUNTY OF PHILADELPHIA
The Carpenters’ Company is proud to present a new exhibit on display at the Athenaeum of Philadelphia from May 13th to August 31st, 2024.
This exhibit celebrates the past 300 years of the Company and its membership, and explores the way in which those members physically constructed the landscape of Philadelphia, while contributing to the standards and definitions of the current architecture, engineering, and construction trades.
We would like to thank the Athenaeum of Philadelphia for hosting this exhibit.
The Athenaeum of Philadelphia is a member-supported library, established in 1814 at a time when the free public library system did not exist and collections of books, available for reading or research, were still mostly limited to institutions, schools or colleges. The Athenaeum nurtures curiosity in members and neighbors, strengthening community through learning and discourse. It is one of 16 membership libraries that collaborate through the Membership Libraries Group.
THE Carpenters' CoMPANY
Set humbly back from Chestnut Street, the Hall has been continuously owned and operated by The Carpenters' Company
of the City and County of Philadelphia, the oldest craft guild in America, since 1770.
RENT THE HALL
Carpenters' Hall can accommodate events for up to 125 guests. The Hall is open to the public from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Tuesday through Sunday and cannot be rented during those hours.
NOTE: Rental of Carpenters’ Hall will resume September 2023.
OPEN to THE PUBLIC
Today, Carpenters' Hall is free to the public and welcomes over 150,000 world-wide visitors to this wonderful Georgian building. Admission has been complimentary since 1857, when it became the first privately owned American building to be opened as a historic monument.
