William Penn Jane’s Walk
Join me Oct. 20 at noon in front of the National Constitution Center
The Tamanend statue by Raymond Sandoval is currently at Front and Market Street, Philadelphia. Tamanend was the sachem or leader of the Lenape tribe William Penn reportedly made a treaty with at Penn Treaty Park. Plans are to move the statue to Tamanend Plaza near 2nd and Market Street by 2026. Photo by my good friend, Gary Glen Price.
If you’re in the Philadelphia area at noon, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, I hope you’ll take advantage of a free William Penn Jane’s Walk I’m giving.
The tour starts at noon in front of the National Constitution Center — where the Presidential Debate just took place — at 525 Arch Street. It runs two to three hours.
The tour is free … and you can leave whenever you choose
Look for me near the entrance holding a yellow sign. that says: “Free Jane’s Walk.” I’m a certified tour guide and author of “Real Philly History, Real Fast,” a popular book published by Temple University Press in 2021.
There’s no registration form and the walking tour will go, rain or shine
Just show up and be ready to walk.
Most years, about 40 people join the tour. Last year, on a rainy cold Saturday morning, five hardy souls made it for two full hours before everyone decided to go home, get dry and get warm.
This year I hope the weather will be crisp, clear and delightful
Jane’s Walks are named in honor of Jane Jacobs, a writer and urban activist who helped stop Robert Moses’ Lower Manhattan Expressway in New York City. More interactive than most tours, they’re usually held in early May in honor of Jane’s birthday, May 4.
But, I regularly do this tour in October, the month of William Penn’s birth. Depending on which calendar you use, Penn’s birthday is either Oct. 14 or Oct. 24.
I can’t charge or take a tip for a Jane’s Walk
But If you enjoy the tour, please donate to a very worthy cause: https://inht.org/
Independence Historical Trust runs many special events to support Independence National Historical Park. It’s currently raising funds to restore the First Bank of the U.S. and reopen the building to the public — a hugely expensive project.
This William Penn Jane’s Walk will trace the amazing success of William Penn. You’ll discover how Penn grew Philadelphia from a “howling wilderness” that started 58 full years after New York City … and 52 years after Boston … and by 1770 was the largest, most important and some say the most cultured city in America.
I like to tell audiences “those cities would already have qualified for AARP (formerly the American Association of Retired Persons) before Philadelphia was even born, and we passed them like a shot.”
The basic route
This walking tour includes stops outside the Arch Street Meeting House, America’s first Market Street, the Tamanend statue, Welcome Park, parts of Society Hill and more. It ends at Washington Square, one of William Penn’s five original squares.
The difference William Penn made
Along the way, you’ll hear historic passages about Philadelphia’s Market Street, learn why so many different countries and religions are represented in the City of Brotherly Love, and discover why Penn wanted a “greene Country Towne.”
At the tour’s end, I’ll give you an easy way to remember Philadelphia Streets that almost no one knows today.
Walk accessibility:
— Most of the walk will be on public streets and sidewalks (including cobblestone/brick or other uneven surfaces).
— Crowded sidewalks. Traffic noise.
— Children, bikes, and dogs welcome.
I hope you can join us.