City Hall

Feb 14, 20212 min read

Construction on Philadelphia's City Hall started in 1871 and wasn't complete until 1901. At the time of this construction, the City Hall area was a residential neighborhood surrounded by houses and apartment buildings. This didn't become a commercial area until after City Hall was built. At that time, Philadelphia's commercial area was in Old City and by the Ferries on Delaware Avenue where most of the commerce and trade was taking place.

The building was designed John McArthur Jr and Thomas Ustick Walter in the Second Empire style, and was constructed at a cost of $24 million. The tower was completed by 1894, but the interior wasn't done until 1901.

The location chosen (Centre Square) was one of the five urban park squares dedicated by William Penn when the city was laid out.

At 548 ft (167 m), including the statue of city founder Billy Penn atop its tower, City Hall was the tallest habitable building in the world from 1894 to 1908. It's still the world's largest free standing masonry building. With 14.5 acres of floor space and almost 700 rooms, City Hall is the largest municipal building in America. On top of City Hall's clock tower is the 37 ft (11 m) tall statue of William Penn, sculpted by Alexander Milne Calder. It's the tallest statue atop any building in the world.

By the time it opened, 2nd Empire architecture was already out of style and many people considered it the ugliest building in the city. In the 1950s, the city council investigated tearing down City Hall (though leaving the tower) for a new building elsewhere. They found that the demolition would cost more than it cost to build the structure, largely due to the building's masonry construction, with some walls up to 22 feet thick.

In 1976 it was designated a National Historic Landmark and today is one of Philadelphia's most photographed sites.