London Coffee House, commonly referred to as the Old London Coffee House, was a coffee house in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in the colonial-era

Province of Pennsylvania The Province of Pennsylvania, also known as the Pennsylvania Colony, was a British North American colony founded by William Penn after receiving a land grant from Charles II of England in 1681. The name Pennsylvania ("Penn's Woods") refers to W ...

, located on the southwest corner of

Market Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...

(formerly High Street) and

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Streets. It was the scene of political and commercial activity, and also served as a place to inspect

black slaves The Atlantic slave trade, transatlantic slave trade, or Euro-American slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of enslaved African people, mainly to the Americas. The slave trade regularly used the triangular trade route and i ...

recently arrived from

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and to bid for their purchase at public auction.

History

Pre-Revolutionary taverns and inns in Philadelphia LCCN2002720485

Opened by William Bradford in 1754, the London Coffee House was built with funds provided by more than 200 Philadelphia merchants, and it soon became their meeting place. At the London Coffee Shop, merchants, ship masters, and others talked business and made deals that they often sealed with nothing more than a simple handshake. The

governor of Pennsylvania A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

and other colonial officials also frequented the coffee house, where they held court in their own private booths. It was named the London coffee house, the second house in Philadelphia to bear that title. The building had stood since 1702, when Charles Reed, later

mayor of Philadelphia The mayor of Philadelphia is the chief executive of the government of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Philadelphia. The current mayor of Philadelphia is Jim Kenney. History The first mayor of Philadelphia, ...

, put it up on land which he bought from Letitia Penn, daughter of

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...

. Bradford was the first to use the structure for coffee house purposes. Many real estate lots were offered over pots of

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...

. Shuttered in the aftermath of the

British occupation of Philadelphia The Philadelphia campaign (1777–1778) was a British effort in the American Revolutionary War to gain control of Philadelphia, which was then the seat of the Second Continental Congress. British General William Howe, after failing to draw ...

in 1777 and 1778, the London Coffee House reopened in 1783. But the 1780s were a difficult time in which to establish or revive a business in the city. In 1791, unable to weather the economic hardship, the London Coffee House was converted into a residence and general store. In 1883, the building was demolished.

References

External links

Old London Coffee House Historical Marker
{{DEFAULTSORT:London Coffee House 1754 establishments in Pennsylvania African slave trade Commercial buildings completed in 1754 Culture of Philadelphia History of Philadelphia Market Street (Philadelphia) Slavery in the United States Taverns in Pennsylvania