Arch Street Friends Meeting House, 330 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, PA

Significance: The Philadelphia-area Yearly Meeting of Friends was established in 1681 and was housed in a number of earlier meeting houses prior to the construction of the current building. In 1804, the east wing and center section of the present Arch Street Meeting House was erected according to a design developed by Quaker carpenter and architect Owen Biddle. The annual session of the women's yearly meeting was held here. The present-day west wing was added in 1811, at which time the men's meeting was moved into the east section and the women moved to the newly completed western section. Arch Street Meeting House is a symmetrically balanced, three-part structure built of bricks laid up in Flemish bond. It is elegantly understated and, therefore despite its Georgian architectural styling and refined construction, is in keeping with Quaker plainness.
Survey number: HABS PA-1388
Building/structure dates: 1803-1805 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1810-1811 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1896 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: ca. 1902- ca. 1906 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1968-1969 Subsequent Work
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 71000716