Constitution House Marker Dedication

This Pennsylvania State Society DAR event will begin at 12:30 pm with the dedication of a Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Historic Marker on Market Street (between 2nd & 3rd streets) in Philadelphia, PA. This location is the site where Miss Dalley’s boarding house once stood and is referred to as the “Constitution House”. While residing there in September of 1787, Gouverneur Morris, the “Penman of the Constitution”, composed the Preamble to the Constitution. During and after the Revolutionary War, Miss Dalley’s boarding house was frequented by delegates to Congress, the Constitutional Convention, and the First Federal Congress. In addition to providing housing, Miss Dalley also entertained the leaders of the founding generation including at least 15 signers of the Declaration, 12 signers of the Constitution, the Marquis de Lafayette, Baron von Steuben, diplomats, governors, and future Presidents George Washington, John Adams, and James Madison.

At 5:30 PM, we will gather at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania for a reception and to view various rare historical documents included in their collection. They include a printer’s proof of the Declaration of Independence, one of the earliest surviving drafts of the U.S. Constitution, a 1683 portraiture of the City of Philadelphia, and an 1850s journal of William Still detailing his experiences protecting runaways on the Underground Railroad.