New to the Website

Chickasaws Visit President Washington (1794), written by Richard Green, tribal historian.

Samuel Fraunces was steward at the President's House. Was he of African descent?

The house shown above no longer exists, but it served as the "White House" from 1790 to 1800 while Philadelphia was the capital of the United States. It stood on Market Street, one block north of Independence Hall. The entrance to the new Liberty Bell Center is at the site where Washington ordered slave quarters built to house some of the nine enslaved Africans he brought to Philadelphia.

Outline of the President's House.
Click for enlargement.

Of Special Interest...

• Brief History of the President's House
• President's House Slavery: By the Numbers: A helpful primer
• Archaeological Excavation
• A House With No Walls: A play inspired by the President's House controversy

In this website you will find:

• History Articles, legislation, maps, photos
  
• Slavery at the President's House including biographies of the 9 enslaved Africans
  
• Timeline 1947-Present History buried and reclaimed
  
• The Project The competition, winning design, excavation, and more
  
• In the News Hundreds of article clippings from various news sources
  
• Write Us Share your thoughts with others
  
• Links Additional online resources
  

President's House Quick Facts

• Washington's "White House" for more than 6 years (1790-97) and John Adams's for almost 4 years (1797-1800)
• Nine enslaved Africans in Washington's household: Oney Judge, Moll, Austin, Hercules, Richmond, Giles, Paris, Christopher Sheels, and Joe (Richardson)
• Oney Judge and Hercules escaped to freedom from here
• Important bills signed here: Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 (Washington), Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 (Adams)
• Slave quarters for Washington's stablehands were 5 feet from entrance to Liberty Bell Center (the Liberty Bell was the symbol of the Abolition movement)
• The house was built by Mary Lawrence Masters
• Richard Penn, a grandson of William Penn, used this as the Governor's Mansion for the colony of Pennsylvania
• General Sir William Howe's headquarters 1777-78 during the British occupation
• Benedict Arnold began his betrayal here
• Financier/Signer Robert Morris bought the house after the 1780 fire, and lived here while Superintendent of Finance. In 1790, he rented it to Philadelphia for Washington's use and sold it in 1795.
• After 1800 the house became the Francis's Union Hotel (which failed)
• In 1832, the building was gutted, leaving only the side walls and the foundations, and three narrow stores were built within the frontage.
• Learn more