If you don’t
walk out of Philadelphia's newest jewel, the new Museum of the American Revolution (MOAR) with a new
understanding of and appreciation for the sacrifices people suffered in order
to settle the colonies and fight for independence, in the process creating a
new nation and becoming a new player on the world political and economic
scene,you've missed one of the main points of the experience. (Click here for a visual tour).
This past
weekend I had the privilege of attending a founding-members only preview grand
opening of the new Museum. I left with a renewed sense of awe that, despite the
seemingly insurmountable obstacles and odds stacked against the American
colonists in taking on the most powerful and wealthiest empire in the world,
and the sheer luck - and unlikely alliances - that emerged to help us prevail, We the People
somehow accomplished something unbelievable and unheard of – a republic form of
government in which the people rule themselves.
We may have
drafted the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain in 1776, but we didn’t
gain true freedom until 1783 with the signing of the Treaty of Paris, and even
then for some time thereafter the greatest focus was on the rights of each of
the thirteen colonies. Having just thrown off a
far-away powerful central government (a monarchy), Americans were in no mood to
even consider the kind of strong central government eventually framed by the
Philadelphia Convention in 1787. This museum tells these tales, and many
other, lesser-known facts and stories surrounding the American Revolution.
The path that the MOAR took to arrive at its new home at Third and Walnut in Philadelphia, and the length of time it took to accomplish it, lasted for more years than the actual revolution itself, and similarly, was no small feat against many obstacles over a long span of time. The gorgeous facility is a testament to the tenacity and dedication of its champions in finding a home for it, getting it built, and finally, at long last, dramatically displaying the artifacts and paying appropriate tribute to the War for Independence.
Efforts to
bring the Museum to our area here in the suburbs date back as far as 1999 when
the National Park Service and the MOAR (formerly known as the American
Revolution Center, or ARC) collaborated on plans for a museum next to Valley
Forge National Historical Park’s (VFNHP) welcome center.
In 2005,
however, the ARC announced plans for its own museum and conference center two
miles away. Philanthroper (and new chairman of the museum’s board of directors)
H.F.”Gerry” Lenfest was brought in to try to move the project forward. He
personally ponied up the $4.1M to purchase 78 acres of privately owned land
adjacent to the VFNHP from the St. Gabe’s protectorate
(Archdiocese of Philadelphia) in Lower Providence Township the day after the
LPT Planning Commission approved the ARC’s request to
rezone the parcel to allowed development beyond a museum.
The reasons
for pulling the plug on the VFNHP location were referenced as park service red
tape, federal fundraising concerns – the ARC board was nervous about the Park
Service’s difficulties funding the maintenance of property and collections they
already owned – and size restrictions on the proposed building footprint.
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| toppling a statue of King George III |
After spending millions of dollars developing plans and fighting in
court, and years’ worth of time and effort, in 2009 Lenfest
and the rest of the executives on the board realized that they had to rise
above the local political squabbles and courtroom drama – that getting this long-envisioned
project built and open to the public was of far more importance than the
longer-term legal and political efforts of trying to convince a suburban
community that it should want a project of national significance that would put
it on the map and bring jobs, tax and tourist dollars to its coffers.
Lenfest and Ed Rendell brokered a deal for a land swap: the ARC would abandon their plans to build the museum
in or near VFNHP and moved the project to Center City. The new museum would be located at 3rd and Chestnut Street in
downtown Philadelphia, within a 55-acre federal park space, on the site of the
former welcome center built for the 1976 bicentennial, in exchange for the National
Park Service receiving ownership of the 78-acre parcel of private land owned by
the American Revolution Center within the boundary of VFNHP.
(Many, many articles [including my own] have been written detailing the headaches of trying to work with the National
Park Service, and in trying to get the project built here in LP, which I won’t revisit
here – Google or check out some of the links at the bottom of this article if
you want more information).
Locally,
I played a role in this effort circa 2008-2009 as a member of and chair of our
Zoning Hearing Board that conducted many evenings’ worth of hearings, listening
to hours of witness testimony and reviewing over one hundred exhibits in a
validity challenge to the zoning of the 78-acre parcel. At one point there were
a total of ten attorneys representing various parties in the hearings!
Also,
one of our current township supervisors, Colleen Eckman, had a starring role, arguably launching her local political career on this one “not
in my backyard” issue, after becoming a vocal opponent of the project (which would have been located
not far from her home in Audubon) and also serving as one of the witnesses in
the zoning validity challenge hearings questioning the proper zoning of the parcel.
So – at long last, in 2017, here it is and here
we are. Lower Providence's loss is Philly's gain. Much has already (here, here, here, here, here, here, and here -- both in the NY Times and Philly Inquirer) been published about the Museum since it opened,
detailing its displays and collection. Maybe it's just that as a member of DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution, who donated the painting "Siege at Yorktown" to the Museum) I had more than a casual interest in the subject matter, but I found it totally
absorbing and, of course, long overdue. Most importantly, take the time to go
see this wonderful addition to the Philadelphia historical scene in person. Consider
becoming a member to help support the museum going forward. Check out the gift
shop, well-stocked with items not typically found in tourist traps, to which a
section is devoted specifically to items about the Continental Army’s brutal winter
at Valley Forge.
And last, but certainly not least, the next time
you feel defeated about something, allow yourself to be inspired by the story of We the People to think about how much American success in the American Revolution
illustrates the impossible odds that can be overcome and the things that can be
accomplished by brave, determined people with tenacity and the courage of their
convictions. http://www.philly.com/philly/news/pennsylvania/20070629_Critics_voice_concerns_over_nonhistoric_extras__Battle_brewing_over_museum.html
http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/MP/20090410/NEWS01/304109982
)
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| Gerry Lenfest at 4-19-17 ribbon cutting |
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