Charles Wilson Peale: World in Miniature

This outing was my first tour of Independence Hall and the Second Bank of the US.  Located in Philadelphia’s historic area, these buildings were once popular gathering places of our ‘founding fathers’.  Our private tour centered on Charles Wilson Peale who arguably produced the first American museum.  He was not wealthy, but continued to paint influential figures and collect specimens.  He succeeded in displaying this content publically; although he never reached his goal of national fame.  Through exploring the room in Independence Hall where Peale displayed his artifacts and seeing his paintings in a modern display at the Second Bank, I now better understand Peale and his motives.  For me it solidified and expanded upon my knowledge about Peale from Harold Colton.  I also formed new perspectives on museum practices and Peale’s role in creating public knowledge.

Peale’s museum was located on the second floor of Independence Hall in an elongated room originally designed as a waiting area.  Here the ‘container’ acts as advertising for the museum content.  It was the City Hall of the time and therefore a popular hub of activity.  Even though it was renovated and reconstructed since the 1800s, I could still imagine Peale’s socio-cultural hierarchy of artifacts lining the walls.  As a member of the philosophical society, He displayed these artifacts and portraits from an Enlightenment perspective, but when Romanticism flourished and other sources of entertainment increased, the museum’s popularity diminished. 

When the museum closed, the city bought 94 of Peale’s portraits that hung on the second floor of Independence Hall.  The Second Bank now houses these portraits.  They each depict a face of someone he deemed politically and socially important.  The arrangement of these portraits changes to accommodate the fast pace of modern society, but the content remains.  Through detailing their expressions, he depicted their personalities.        

At its peak, Peale’s museum was highly regarded and was as popular as those in Europe (Colton 233).  He wanted to portray ‘his world in miniature’ and to provide public entertainment and knowledge (Peale 28).  This purpose is similar to the early definition of museum purposes which was to “inspire and entertain” (Abt 120).  This room may not be remembered for the collection it once housed, but Peale’s legacy as the first museum founder lives on.