The Second Continental Congress approved the United States Declaration of Independence in Independence Hall.
The building stood in Philadelphia as the Pennsylvania State House and was later renamed Independence Hall. Congress met there on July 4, 1776, when it approved the declaration’s final wording. The document was then read publicly near the building in what is now Independence Square.
Independence Hall was important beyond the declaration. The Second Continental Congress also established the Continental Army there in 1775 and appointed George Washington as its commander. Delegates later returned to the building for the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
The name “Independence Hall” became common after the American Revolution because of its association with the declaration and the independence movement. The building is now part of Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia and is recognized as a major symbol of the country’s founding.