Carpenters’ Hall to commemorate 250th anniversary of First Continental Congress this fall with free performances

The First Continental Congress was held at Carpenters’ Hall in 1774, and the 250th anniversary of the historic event will be commemorated this fall with a series of free performances at the Philly landmark. 

Every Saturday and Sunday through Oct. 27, actors will portray First Continental Congress delegates, their spouses and other figures of the time period during live reenactments at Carpenters’ Hall. The “Building Independence” series will feature performances at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

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Carpenters’ Hall hosted the First Continental Congress from Sept. 5 to Oct. 26, 1774. There were 56 delegates representing 12 out of 13 colonies in attendance, and the group met in order to formulate a response to Great Britain’s increasing taxation on the colonies. Carpenters’ Hall was chosen as the meeting spot because it was privately owned — by the Carpenters’ Company of Philadelphia trade association — making it a safer spot to meet out of view of British agents.

The First Continental Congress may not have ended in immediate calls for revolution — that happened in 1776 during the Second Continental Congress at Independence Hall — but it did serve to bring more unity to the colonies and was the first step toward achieving independence.

Among the people portrayed during the “Building Independence” reenactments will be John Adams, Abigail Adams, Patrick Henry and John Rutledge. The short scenes will cover Continental Congress topics like taxation, slavery and independence, and the effects that the delegates’ policies had on their families and other people living in the colonies. There will also be quotable historic moments during the reenactments, like when Henry exclaimed during a speech, “I am not a Virginian. I am an American.”

“Building Independence,” which is happening through a partnership between the Carpenters’ Company and Historic Philadelphia, Inc., is also part of the festivities for the Carpenters’ Company’s 300th anniversary and the 250th anniversary of the completion of Carpenters’ Hall.

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Building Independence

Saturdays and Sundays, Sept. 7 through Oct. 27
11 a.m., 1 p.m., 3 p.m. | Free
Carpenters’ Hall
320 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia