Introducing Path to Democracy, a 19-Stop Self-Guided Tour in Philly

In 1774, before the American Revolution officially began, delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies met to list their grievances against the British crown in a last-ditch effort to avoid war. This First Continental Congress, held between September 5 and October 6, 1774, witnessed the first steps toward creating a new democracy. The big takeaway? The realization that the colonies needed to align with each other — instead of each looking to Great Britain — to advance their shared goals. The delegates’ chairs and a scale model of the building are still on display. But the building itself, built by craftsmen for craftsmen, is a gem as well.

The house outlined here was Benjamin Franklin’s home while serving in the Second Continental Congress in 1776 and the Constitutional Convention in 1787. So, not only can visitors imagine the walls and furnishing of the house from the clues at Franklin Court, but they can also wonder about Franklin’s philosophy as he was lending his wisdom to the formation of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. Fun Fact: You can learn even more about Franklin’s role in the founding of the nation at the underground museum that’s on site.

Before photography, paintings were the way to preserve one’s likeness. So, while artist Charles Willson Peale supported the young country by fighting in the American Revolution and serving in government, he was also driven to record the faces that created the nation. The portrait collection housed in the Second Bank depicts “people who lived in a time of unprecedented political and social change during which Americans invented and then tested the idea for a nation of ‘united states.’” Short captions describe each subject and the interrelationships among this small group of 18th-century leaders shaping the country’s framework.

Above the door of the American Philosophical Society’s (APS) library on 5th Street — it’s the two-story, red-brick building with a curvy staircase — is a sculpture of Ben Franklin in a toga. It’s a replica of the first piece of public art in Philadelphia from 1791. Ben’s toga is a nod to the Roman Republic to which the founders were aspiring. He’s holding a royal scepter pointing down to imply the decline of monarchies, while government by the people was on the way up. The APS museum across 5th Street holds rotating exhibitions that highlight the intersections of science, history and art.

This small cluster of red-brick buildings is the site where the United States was founded around the then-radical notion that a nation could be ruled by the consent of the people, rather than by a monarch. By the 1770s, American colonists were split: Loyalists favored remaining part of the British Empire, patriots wanted revolution, and much of the population had no say at all. Despite the division, the continental government hammered out the Declaration of Independence, and in 1776, the Second Continental Congress signed it here, laying the groundwork for a new story of democracy. Visitors must reserve tickets online or by phone in advance for tours of Independence Hall.

Although the bell you hear gonging hourly from Independence Hall is the Centennial Bell, the louder voice, metaphorically, is the Liberty Bell across the street. It was just the state house bell until 1839 when abolitionists took note of its Biblical inscription, “Proclaim Liberty thro’ all the Land and to all the Inhabitants thereof” (Leviticus 25:10) and elevated it to a symbol of their anti-slavery movement. The Bell endures as a symbol of liberty worldwide and is a pilgrimage site for people escaping oppression of any sort. Admirers can view the Bell through glass walls, or learn the full story inside the Liberty Bell Center.

As a panel in this open-air exhibit points out, the site presents the core contradiction of the founding of the nation: the enshrinement of liberty and the institution of slavery. George Washington spent seven years of his presidency here, laying the groundwork for the nation’s most important elected office. Through videos, text panels and engravings, the site pays equal homage to the nine enslaved Africans who toiled in Washington’s home and points out the paradox of their living quarters existing next to the entrance of what would later become the Liberty Bell Center.

The story of Pennsylvania Hall, which stood on this site for just three days in 1838, isn’t the riot that destroyed the building, but the courage and persistence of the people who used it to further their cause. Amid threats, the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society built the nation’s first meeting space specifically for abolitionists. During its inaugural meeting, an angry mob threw rocks through the windows, then ransacked and burned the building while firefighters stood by. Undeterred, the women organizers regrouped in another location to continue their quest.

Eleven years after the country was formed — and with intense debate and compromise — citizens formalized the laws of a representative-style government into the U.S. Constitution, a document that has since become the model for democratic nations around the world. There’s no better place to explore the four most powerful pages in American history than the highly interactive National Constitution Center. All visits end with the opportunity to sign the Constitution or dissent in the museum’s iconic Signers’ Hall, which features 42 life-size, bronze statues of the Founding Fathers.

Betsy Ross was a political rebel, a Colonial businesswoman and a mother. She lived in a time when women were not permitted to take part in democracy, but she took a stand nonetheless. Generations later, her story inspired suffragists to sew a star on a flag each time a state voted for ratification of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote. At the Betsy Ross House, wander through tiny rooms and tight staircases of the circa-1740 residence, then talk to Betsy herself about her role in the American Revolution and her fascinating work and life.

In the era of the American Revolution, there were 25 Jewish families in Philadelphia a century after William Penn established his colony of religious tolerance. They could worship freely, but could not vote or hold political office. This site marks the first, rented meeting space of Congregation Mikveh Israel in 1740. (Their current home is a block away.) Philadelphia’s Jews in the 1770s were indispensable to the Revolution, but they were barred from government because of a “test oath” that required expressing one’s religious beliefs. Although an attempt to overturn the requirement failed, the protest influenced the U.S. Constitution, which does not provide a religious oath for holding office.

Pamphlets and newspapers were the communication tools of the 18th century. The print shops producing this material were concentrated in the busiest part of town, near the Delaware River, and they were decidedly partisan — patriot or loyalist, and then favoring political parties of the new government. Market Street is dotted with printer plaques, including one for John Dunlap’s shop (near 138 Market Street), which printed copies of the Declaration of Independence throughout the night of July 4, 1776 to spread news of independence. Watch park rangers set type then crank the arm of a (reproduction) 18th-century press — while answering questions — at the Franklin Court printing office.

For centuries, the land now known as Philadelphia was home to and cared for by native peoples, including the Lenape, whose name means “original people.” Settler William Penn greeted Chief Tamaned and local Lenape in friendship, attempting although ultimately failing to form a sustainable equality with the Indigenous people. Penn’s treaty with Tamanend likely didn’t look like the apocryphal scene that’s portrayed in Benjamin West’s 1771 painting by the same name. But his willingness to live peacefully with the original population, combined with Tamanend’s esteem as a leader, puts them ahead of their time.

As Ben Franklin was leaving the Constitutional Convention — in which delegates would vote to approve or reject the new law of the land — Elizabeth Powel asked him, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?” He replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.” After working at Independence Hall during the day, delegates to the Convention often gathered at the home of Elizabeth and her husband, Samuel Powel. Elizabeth was a friend and advisor, and notably helped convince President George Washington to return to office for a second term. The house drips elegance and comes to life through the Powels’ stories of political savvy and lavish entertainment. Check schedule for tour times.

The formation of the United States, with its then-radical notion of self-government, was a home-grown endeavor. But the emerging nation benefited from the military and philosophical expertise of Europeans who joined the cause, including Polish military engineer Thaddeus Kościuszko. Upon his arrival in Philadelphia in August 1776, Kościuszko’s battlefield know-how helped the American effort. He fought with an idealistic belief in democracy and enjoyed the friendship of the Founding Fathers. Visit his home at 3rd and Pine streets for first-floor exhibits, and his upstairs bedchamber, where he received visitors, including Thomas Jefferson. Open weekends, seasonally.

In 1817, 3,000 African Americans met at Mother Bethel AME Church to discuss the American Colonization Society’s (ACS) plan to resettle free Blacks in West Africa. Among them: James Forten, a prosperous sailmaker and community builder. The group denounced resettlement and put it to a vote. Although unanimous, only a handful of participants were allowed to cast a ballot. The incident sent a message that the group stood resolutely with their loved ones still in chains, not the slaveholders; and that they were willing to challenge both adversaries and traditional leadership. Visit the church’s basement museum, which also holds the tomb of founder Reverend Richard Allen.

When the post-Civil War Voting Rights law was passed in 1870, Octavius Catto encouraged people to vote. For doing this, he was assassinated in 1871 — on the very first election day that African Americans were allowed to vote. This memorial represents his contributions to athletics, education, trolley desegregation, the military and voting rights. The monument came 146 years after Catto’s death. This long arc is a reminder that democracy is everlasting work and that each American citizen plays a role in bringing justice to light.

When you spot William Penn’s statue atop City Hall, remember that his vision was radical: to create a safe haven for religious freedom and to encourage the participation and consent of the governed. Penn founded Philadelphia on the ancestral homeland of the Lenape in 1682. Penn’s tenets of representative government outlined in his Charter of Privileges were a precursor to the U.S. Constitution. Take the City Hall Tower Tour for an up-close look at the statue — and an incomparable view of the city.

The Freemasons were a popular fraternal order established in the 1730s, and prominent figures such as Benjamin Franklin and George Washington were involved in Freemason societies. Opponents who feared the organization was secretly controlling the government created a political party in 1828: the Anti-Masonic Party. In 1831, the country’s first true “third party” held the first national presidential-nominating convention, a practice that the other parties soon adopted. The Anti-Masonic Party also spread its message through party newspapers — a tactic that the main parties began to use as well. Tour the grand, architectural wonder that is the Masonic Temple to see ornate, period-inspired meeting halls and hear anecdotes about the society.