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All the United States Pennsylvania Philadelphia Philadelphia City Hall

Philadelphia City Hall

This elaborate towering structure was once famed for its revolutionary height.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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David Doochin
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A view of City Hall from below. (Photo:   Versatile Aure/CC BY 2.0)
A view of City Hall from South Broad Street at Locust Street. (Photo:   Beyond My Ken/CC BY-SA 2.0)
A view from inside the building leading to the courtyard. (Photo:   Beyond My Ken/CC BY-SA 2.0)
The construction of the building in the early 1880s. (Photo:   Library of Congress/Public Domain)
City Hall reflection   Julio Torres / Atlas Obscura User
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Philadelphia City Hall   Jaszmina Szendrey / Atlas Obscura User
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Philadelphia City Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (United States).   Michael Barera / Atlas Obscura User
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Given that Philadelphia is the birthplace of our nation, it's only fitting that its seat of government is one of the largest municipal buildings in the country, and even in the world — bigger even than the U.S. Capitol Building.

This towering City Hall was built by architect John McArthur, Jr. in the Second Empire style, and was the tallest habitable tower in the world from 1894 until it was surpassed by the Singer Building in Manhattan in 1908.

The building's antenna spire reaches 548 feet high, and atop it sits a larger-than-life statue of William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania. Weighing in at 27 tons of bronze and standing 37 feet high, the statue itself towers as the tallest atop any building in the world. The metal portion of the tower boasts four giant clocks on each side, each 26 feet in diameter.

Today, well over a century after it was constructed, the City Hall still stands proud as the 16th tallest building in Pennsylvania and a reminder of the city's uniquely important place in American history. 

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daviddoochin

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Jane Weinhardt Goldberg, Molly McBride Jacobson, Jaszmina Szendrey, The25th...

  • Jane Weinhardt Goldberg
  • Molly McBride Jacobson
  • Jaszmina Szendrey
  • The25th
  • zombiefetishist
  • missingfilm
  • TheKopasClan
  • Taterchips
  • cait7911
  • Michael Barera
  • Xavixavir
  • donnatalarico
  • RoseMB
  • Julio Torres
  • Antahny
  • kassrb9039
  • sorcha1977

Published

August 5, 2016

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Philadelphia City Hall
1401 John F. Kennedy Boulevard
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
United States
39.954133, -75.164396
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