America's Carpenters' Hall

**Tumbleweed** · Admin Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts votes: 4

This is an article on America's First Continental Congress.

Carpenters' Hall was just completed when in September 1774 it found itself host to the First Continental Congress which met to oppose British rule.

Quote:

When Benjamin Franklin needed an architect to build his house, he turned to master builder Robert Smith of the Carpenters' Company. Smith not only belonged to the Carpenters' Company — he designed their headquarters, Carpenters' Hall. Founded in Philadelphia in 1724, the Carpenters' Company was organized to share information about the art of building, determine the value of completed work, hone architectural skills, and help indigent craftsmen. Simulating the trade guilds of 18th century England, the Carpenters' Company has held regular meetings for over 275 years, making it the oldest trade guild in the country.

Carpenters of the Colonial Era were architects as well as builders. The Company published a book of rules and prices and architectural designs called Articles and Rules in 1786. Only members of the Carpenters' Company were allowed to see the book. If a Carpenter showed it to an outsider, he would face expulsion. It's been said that Thomas Jefferson, the ex-President, was rebuffed in his attempt to obtain a copy of the book in 1817.

Located in the hub of colonial and capital Philadelphia, the Carpenters often found themselves in the center of political activity. This building housed the seven-week session of the First Continental Congress that met in 1774. Why, one might ask, did they not meet at the State House (Independence Hall) just a block away? The State House was perceived to be a hive of Tory sympathizers. In fact, some members of the Royalist press even suggested that the necks of the Revolutionary insurgents "might be inconveniently lengthened" if they did not desist in their activities.

Carpenters' Hall also served as the headquarters of the First Bank of the United States in 1791. Others to occupy the venerable rooms include: the Bank of the State of Pennsylvania, United States Custom House, Franklin Institute, Society of Friends, the United States Law Office, the Apprentice's Free Library, the Second Bank of the United States, and the Philadelphia Auction Market.

Source