America250's founding-era centerpiece, Independence Hall, was originally known by what name?

America250's founding-era centerpiece, Independence Hall, was originally known as the Pennsylvania State House.

The building was constructed in Philadelphia for the colonial legislature of Pennsylvania. The Second Continental Congress met there during the American Revolution, and the Declaration of Independence was debated and adopted in the building in 1776.

The Constitutional Convention also met there in 1787 and produced the United States Constitution. The building's later name, Independence Hall, reflects its association with both the Declaration and the Constitution rather than its original governmental purpose.

A nearby building, Congress Hall, served as the meeting place of the United States Congress when Philadelphia was the national capital. That distinction can cause confusion: Independence Hall was the Pennsylvania State House and the site of major founding debates, while Congress Hall was a later federal legislative building. America250 highlights Independence Hall because it connects the country's independence and constitutional beginnings.