Independence Hall & the Second National Bank

When entering the second floor of Independence Hall you can view the space where Charles Wilson Peale once operated his museum.  The space now is set up to look like what Independence Hall would have looked like during the late 18th century but with the help of letters from Peale himself and his children, you can imagine what the rooms would have looked like while the museum was in operation.  The long room which is the largest of any room on the second floor is where Peale kept his collection of birds as well as insects and fossils.  There are also two small rooms, one on each side of the long room where Peale kept his mammoth skeleton and his collection of mammals.  Throughout the museum space, Peale also displayed portraits that he himself painted.  A portion of those paintings are now displayed in the Second National Bank which has been transformed into a museum.  The portraits in the museum are almost entirely white men.  Each man was chosen by Peale because he felt they displayed the characteristics of a good citizen and good American.  The Second National Bank which at one time was the equivalent to Fort Knox at present time is a large building with a multitude of rooms, all of which displayed the art of Peale.  Each portrait had a number next to it and a blurb about who that person was on a plaque beneath the painting.