Directions

Arch Street Friends Meeting House

320 Arch Street • Philadelphia, PA 19106

LOCATION AND NEIGHBORHOOD:  In the heart of the nation’s most historic square mile

  • Two blocks to business district and the Liberty Bell
  • Four blocks to Penn’s Landing
  • Eight blocks to Convention Center and Reading Terminal
  • Eight miles to Philadelphia International Airport
  • Area attractions include Ben Franklin’s grave, Betsy Ross House, Constitution Center, Independence Mall

DRIVING DIRECTIONS

From Market Street and points south in Center City:  head north on 3rd Street; turn left onto Arch Street.
From I-676 (Vine Street Expresssway) from points north and west:  take 6th Street south to Race Street; turn left and head east on Race to 4th Street.
From I-95 coming from the north:  take 2nd Street to Callowhill exit and continue on 2nd Street for four blocks; turn west onto Arch Street.
 
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
 

SEPTA buses run frequently on Market Street. SEPTA regional rail:  get off at Market East Station and walk to 4th and Market, turn north for one block; or take underground (Frankfurt Line) and get off at 5th & Market.

ON FOOT

William Penn’s design of his Green Country Town is ideal for visiting on foot.  It is in sharp contrast to the cities in seventeenth century Europe.  William Penn had seen first hand the devastation of the plague of 1665 and the Great London Fire of 1666.  He wanted his city to be “wholesome and never burnt.” In 1681, the city was laid out by his surveyor, Thomas Holme, in a gridiron pattern with tree-lined streets --  numbered streets going north and south while east and west streets were named after native trees.   (Arch Street used to be Mulberry Street, Race Street was Sassafras, and South Street was Cedar).  He also laid out four public squares at the four corners of the city, with a larger square in the center, to promote community.  Today, Philadelphia City Hall sits on the site of Center Square; the four corner squares have been renamed after prominent Philadelphians.  Residents, workers, and visitors alike continue to enjoy these open green spaces.