The building renamed Independence Hall was the Pennsylvania State House.
Located in Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania State House hosted the Second Continental Congress when it adopted the Declaration of Independence in 1776. It also hosted the Constitutional Convention in 1787, which drafted the United States Constitution. These two events make the building one of the most important sites in the nation’s founding history.
The building acquired the name Independence Hall during the nineteenth century, reflecting its connection with the declaration and the creation of the United States. Its central assembly room is commonly known as the Assembly Room, where delegates debated both independence and the Constitution.
Visitors sometimes confuse the site with nearby Congress Hall, which served as the meeting place of the United States Congress from 1790 to 1800. America250 highlights Independence Hall because the building directly connects the 1776 declaration with the nation’s later constitutional government.