Only a few blocks from Independence Hall and situated within Old City, Philadelphia, sits the First Bank of the United States. Closed to the public for over forty years, the historic landmark will be transformed into an interactive museum and aims to reopen by the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States in 2026.
Independence National Historical Park (INHP) will break ground on a $22 million restoration and renovation of the bank into a museum devoted to the birth of the American economy. The grant, provided by the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund, will be paired with $4.5 million raised by the Independence Historical Trust.
The National Park Service and Independence Historical Trust will work with John Milner Architects Inc., to reimagine the First Bank building. New York-based Local Projects will lead visitor experience and exhibitions for the museum.
The neoclassical façade will remain unchanged aside from a few minor renovations. John Milner Architects designed updates for the side of the building to include an elevator, bathrooms, and temperature control. A floor-to-roof rotunda that was installed at the turn of the twentieth century will also be renovated. The museum will be accessible through an entrance behind the bank. Construction is estimated to be completed at the end of 2025.
According to Jonathan Burton, Director of Development at Independence Historical Trust, the museum plans exhibitions on the bank’s inception by Alexander Hamilton, the bank’s role in funding westward expansion and the industrial economy, and an area dedicated to the role the bank played in the slave trade.
The First Bank Museum will join other historic institutions that tell the story of the country’s beginnings at Philadelphia’s Independence Mall, such as the Museum of the American Revolution, Independence Hall, and the Constitution Center. The First Bank Museum will add to the story of how the nation thrived and grew.
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