Walking along Philadelphia’s Market Street is often like stepping backwards in American history. Rich in Quaker history, revolutionary moments, and the lives of a number of founding fathers, Market Street is one of the city’s most-traveled and historical roads.
Portions of the street have been renamed to honor Market Street’s place in Philadelphia history. The “Avenue of Our Founders,” located on Market between Front and Eighth Street, honors America’s founding fathers and other iconic moments in our nation’s history. These sections of Market Street house the city’s most well-known historical sites like the Liberty Bell and the President’s House, though the renaming and new signage hopes to draw attention to the city’s lesser-known historical sites as well. The push for the renaming came from the Association of Philadelphia Tour Guides, a group striving to hold tour guides to a high standard of professionalism and historical accuracy.
Also renamed was a portion of Sixth Street between Race and Lombard, now known as the “Avenue of Freedom” to mark sites of black historical significance. Sites along the Avenue of Freedom include the Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, a hub for the abolitionist movement, and the former site of Pennsylvania Hall, which was burned down by anti-black mobs.
Councilman Mark Squilla sponsored the renaming, telling the Philadelphia Inquirer that the new street signs are meant to commemorate “the freedom and liberty that so many people fought for, and that we’re still fighting for today.”
New intersection signs marking the “Avenue of Our Fathers” and the “Avenue of Freedom” will be up this month, with a number of historic sites along both routes getting new signage as well.