10/18 Philadelphia

We were in Philadelphia, Penn. This was first capital of America. This is were the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed.

The Founding Fathers sign three important documents in Philadelphia. The Declaration of Independence was read in front of people on July 4, 1776. Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. On August 10, 1776 the final copy of the Declaration of Independence was signed. The Articles of Confederation was the first Constitution. In 1787 the Continental Congress decided that the Central Government needed more control of the states so it made a Constitution. During the meeting for the Constitution Benjamin Franklin commented on the sun on the back of the Presidents chair and said, “I have always pondered if the sun was rising or setting. Now, I have the pleasure to know that it is a rising sun not a setting sun.“ Also during the making of the Constitution Benjamin Franklin came up with a compromise for the states that were arguing about their rights. After the Constitution, these United States became the United State because Before the Constitution, the states had there own currency, didn’t have to pay taxes to support the government and could make a standing army. Benjamin Franklin also said, “You have a republic if you can keep it.” Philadelphia has a mix of older building and newer but most are reproductions of older buildings.

Benjamin Franklin was an inventer, scholar, printer, a post-master before the war, and diplomat. He invented the electrical battery, lightening-rod, flippers, bi-focals for glasses, use kites to discover properties of lightening, and was the first use positive and negative (plus and minus) to describe electricity. He made the first lottery tickets in the new world. He made it money as a printer. He went to France and helped convince the French King, Louis XVI, to support the Americans in the Revolutionary War. He did this with only two years of school.

Philadelphia is a house to many important events. The Liberty Bell is one of the nation's most important relic. It represent the fight for liberty and justice for America. The bell was first named the State House Bell At first the bell was cast in London and arrived in America 1753 and as soon as they got here it cracked, so some metalworkers decided that they would remake the bell with a mold. The bell we see today is the one the metalworkers made. The abolitionists named the bell the Liberty Bell to represent the Liberty of slaves. We ate at City Tavern, where some important people ate. This was the meeting place of the Continental Congress until it moved to a meetinghouse and Paul Revere ate here for dinner. This is also the place that the Congress celebrated the signing of the Constitution. This are some of the few places that have a history in Philadelphia