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It was founded to keep inflation in check following the War of 1812. The Greek Revival building was built between 1819 and 1824 and modeled by architect William Strickland after the Parthenon.
The Bank served as the depository for Federal funds until 1833, when it became the center of bitter controversy between bank president Nicholas Biddle and President Andrew Jackson. Jackson, who saw the bank as instrument of political corruption and a threat to American liberties, instructed his Secretaries of the Treasury to instead deposit funds in state banks, choking off the Second Bank's primary source of revenue. Always a privately owned institution, it lost its Federal charter in 1836, and ceased operations in 1841.
The building continued for a short time to house a banking institution under a Pennsylvania charter. From 1845 to 1935 the building served as the Philadelphia Customs House. Today it is open, free to the public, and features the "People of Independence" exhibit - a portrait gallery with 185 paintings of Colonial and Federal leaders, military officers, explorers and scientists, including many by Charles Willson Peale.
Strickland's design for the Second Bank of the U.S. in Philadelphia (1819-1824) beat out the design of Strickland's teacher, Benjamin Latrobe. Although Strickland was still copying classical prototypes at this point, the Second Bank is an ambitious building modeled on the greatest Greek design: The Parthenon of Athens. The competition had called for "chaste" Greek style: Strickland's elegant Greek temple design is a fitting result. The architect clearly saw this building as one of his major accomplishments, as he had it included in the background of the portrait that Philadelphia society painter John Neagle did of Strickland in 1829 (Yale University Art Gallery)
East façade of the Merchants' Exchange, Philadelphia. | | Description | |
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Comparison of the Second Bank of the U.S. with the later Merchants' Exchange (1832-1834), also in Philadelphia, reveals the growth of Strickland's talent and confidence as an architect. With the Merchant Exchange, Strickland still had a classical example in mind (the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates), but created a unique building, specifically styled to fit the siting. The Merchant's Exchange was to be placed in a slightly awkward location, at the intersection of two major thoroughfares, in between the waterfront and the business district. The elegant curved façade reflects the carriage and foot traffic that would have been circulating in front of the building. This elevation, which faces toward the waterfront, is unique, Greek Revival, but modern, while the more formal elevation can be found on the opposite side of the building, facing the rest of Philadelphia. Strickland's maturity as an architect is demonstrated in this building, showing that America's architects were truly innovating, rather than copying old European classics.
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