Ahead of America250, Villanova Historian Reveals How Independence Hall Almost Didn’t Survive

Philadelphia's Independence Hall has long occupied an outsized place in the American imagination. The space where the Continental Army was established, the Declaration of Independence adopted and the United States Constitution ratified, the site was once described by President Abraham Lincoln as the source "where were collected together the wisdom, the patriotism, the devotion to principle, from which sprang the institutions under which we live."

In July, these hallowed grounds will yet again take center stage, as the country observes its semiquincentennial, or America250, celebration. In due course, House lawmakers will gather at the landmark for a special commemorative event, mayors from across the U.S. will march to the gates in a show of civic pride and solidarity, and thousands of visitors will flock to the site daily in appreciation for its significance to the cause of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

However, while Independence Hall's role in the national saga will go widely remarked and recognized, the building itself has a story that remains largely unknown. According to Whitney Martinko, PhD, associate professor of History and director of the Albert Lepage Center for History in the Public Interest at Villanova University, the "cradle of American democracy" almost never survived the country's infancy.

"Early on, the challenge was about two things," says Dr. Martinko, who specializes in public history, historic preservation and the early U.S. "One was about ownership of what was called the 'Old State House,' because it was the former statehouse in the colony of Pennsylvania. And the second was about the development of the city around it."