page_title: Independence Mall (Philadelphia)
section_title: Conception
hierarchical_section_title: Independence Mall (Philadelphia) / History / Conception
caption_attribution_description: Independence Hall, and First Block of Independence Mall under construction, 1952.
context_page_description: Independence Mall is a three-block section of Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It lies directly north of Independence Hall, and is bounded by Chestnut, Race, 5th and 6th Streets. The south block is called the First Block, the middle block is called the Second Block, and the north block is called the Third Block.
  Buildings and structures on the Mall include the National Constitution Center; the Independence Visitor Center and the Free Quaker Meetinghouse; and the President's House Memorial and the Liberty Bell Center. A multi-level underground parking garage lies beneath much of the Second Block, and a small open-air café opened on the east side of the block in 2008. Public restrooms and the "Peoples' Plaza" are located on the First Block.
  Buildings surrounding the Mall include Congress Hall, Independence Hall, and Old City Hall to the south; the Philadelphia Bourse, the National Museum of American Jewish History, Christ Church Burial Ground, and the Philadelphia Mint to the east; the approach to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge to the north; and WHYY-TV, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, the James A.
context_section_description: The groundwork for a park area surrounding Independence Hall was laid when the Historic Sites Act of 1935 was adopted.  Even before Independence Hall was officially named a National Historic Site in 1943, Architect Roy F. Larson developed the original concept for the site now known as Independence Mall in 1937.  His concept called for a 5-block mall extending from Chestnut to Callowhill Streets, and incorporating the approaches to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. and was strongly backed by the Independence Hall Association and its president, Judge Edwin O. Lewis. In 1947, as a national park was being assembled around Independence Hall, Lewis advocated that the federal government purchase the three blocks north of the historic building for the park. The National Park Service (NPS) was only interested in purchasing the First Block. His plan rejected, Lewis took the idea of a three-block mall to the Pennsylvania General Assembly, convincing legislators to build it as a state park and a monument to Pennsylvanians who had died in World War II, a concept that was never fully realized.
  Independence Mall State Park was created in the 1950s with the intention that the land would eventually be turned over to the NPS. Funded by 40-year state bonds, its construction was a joint venture between Pennsylvania and the City of Philadelphia, and was overseen by Edmund Bacon, director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. A couple hundred 18th-, 19th-, and 20th-century buildings were purchased and demolished for the project. Among these were the surviving walls of the President's House – the "White House" of George Washington and John Adams during the decade (1790–1800) that Philadelphia served as the temporary national capital. The only building not demolished was the Free Quaker Meetinghouse at the southwest corner of 5th & Arch Streets. It was relocated 30 feet to the west, so that 5th Street could be widened.  It is important to note that the original approved design(s) for the Mall were created without involvement from the National Park Service.
  The first block closest to Independence Mall was completed in 1954.  The design for the first block was developed by Wheelwright, Stevenson and Langren, a Philadelphia Landscape Architecture Firm. By their design, the block featured a central lawn surrounded by terraces, walkways and a formal allée of trees. The next block featured a central fountain and a square reflecting pool.  It was also surrounded by terraces and two brick arcades to mimic the first block.
  The northernmost block was designed by Dan Kiley, a Landscape Architect influential in the modernist style.  His 1963 plan was designed based on Philadelphia's original five-city-square layout.  Each "square" was represented by fountains placed in scale to the Center City map.  Surrounding the fountains was a regularly spaced array of 700 Honey Locust trees planted 12'-6" by 18' on-center within a brick paved plaza.  The trees ultimately failed due to the tight spacing and urban environment; many were removed, degrading the overall design intent.
caption: Independence Hall, with newly demolished First Block of Independence Mall, 1952.
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