Existing comment:
First Bank of the United States.
"Most of the important measures of every government are connected with the treasury." -- Alexander Hamilton, 1792
The strength and grandeur of the architecture of the Bank of the United States reflects the dominance of Alexander Hamilton's Treasury Department in the new Federal government in the 1790s.
By 1797 when the bank was completed, this part of the city had become an enclave for the Treasury Department, the largest agency of the government. In an office across the street and to your right, the Secretary of the Treasury formulated financial policy. Lesser officials worked in rented offices up and down this street examining accounts, keeping records, reviewing claims, and receiving and disbursing funds.
The exterior of the bank building has been restored. The bank is not open to the public, except for special exhibitions.
The First Bank of the United States was constructed between 1794 and 1797 to the designs of Samuel Blodger, a merchant and economist. The First Bank, which functioned like a modern Federal Reserve Bank, was the cornerstone of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton's financial plan.
In 1811, Stephen Girard brought the bank after Congress failed to renew the bank's charter. Following the 1831 death of Stephen Girard, the building became the Girard Bank of Philadelphia. The bank's interior was extensively remodeled from 1901-1902. Many outside changes also occurred including the replacement of the wood cornice with a galvanized sheet metal cornice.
In the 1960s, the National Park Service restored the exterior to its 1790s appearance. The work included the removal of a building addition, restoration of the original roof and window configuration, and replacement of the sheet metal cornice with a wood cornice on the Third Street elevation. This project replaced the remaining deteriorated metal cornice with a new fiberglass cornice.
IN the future, the building will be the new home of the Civil War Museum. |