Pennsylvania
New Garden Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Founded 1681 by William Penn as a Quaker Commonwealth. Birthplace of THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE and THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
In 1681 William Penn received a royal charter and founded Pennsylvania as a Quaker commonwealth built on religious tolerance and fair dealing. Within a century its chief city, Philadelphia, became the cradle of American nationhood, where delegates debated and adopted the Declaration of Independence and later framed the Constitution of the United States. This marker greets travelers entering a state that helped author the nation's founding ideals.
Why it matters
Few states can claim to be the birthplace of both the Declaration and the Constitution—the twin charters of American self-government.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related people
- · William Penn
Related events
- · Declaration of Independence
- · Constitutional Convention
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Battle of Brandywine
Kennett Township, PA · est. 1952
On September 11, 1777, some 11,000 Continental soldiers under George Washington took position along Brandywine Creek to block a British thrust toward Philadelphia. They faced roughly 18,000 British and Hessian troops under General William Howe. In a long day of maneuver and hard fighting near Chadds Ford, the outnumbered and outflanked Americans were driven from the field.
Battle of Brandywine
Kennett Township, PA · est. 1952
Here, in the early morning hours of September 11, 1777, General William Howe divided the British army for a two-pronged assault on Washington's line along the Brandywine. Knyphausen's column pressed east to fix the American center at Chadds Ford, while a wing under Cornwallis marched a long roundabout route—north, then east—to fall upon Washington's exposed right flank from behind. It was a textbook flanking maneuver that echoed Howe's tactics at Long Island the year before.
Thomas McKean
Franklin Township, PA · est. 1974
This Chester County farm was the 1734 birthplace of Thomas McKean, one of the most consequential founders few remember. A signer of the Declaration of Independence, he served simultaneously in the politics of two states and famously urged Caesar Rodney's dramatic ride to break Delaware's tie for independence. He later became Chief Justice and then Governor of Pennsylvania.
Battle of Brandywine
New Castle County, DE · est. 1952
This marker traces the tactical crux of the Battle of Brandywine on September 11, 1777, where General Anthony Wayne held the American center near Chadds Ford, facing west across the creek. While Washington's attention was fixed on Cornwallis's flanking march three miles to the north, General Knyphausen's British and Hessian division forced a crossing of the Brandywine and drove Wayne's men back. The double blow — a flanking column and a frontal assault — unhinged the whole American position.