( Library Company of Philadelphia)Įarly American coffeehouses were often modest ventures. The history of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange can be traced to the London Coffee House at Front and High (Market) Streets, shown here in 1830. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, coffeehouses remained an integral part of the social fabric, with hundreds operating in the city’s center and scores more in surrounding neighborhoods and suburbs. Philadelphia’s coffeehouse scene transformed yet again in the twentieth century with the arrival of regional and national franchises. As a result, proprietors reached out to new clientele, competing with taverns, inns, and hotels by offering elaborate menus as well as social and intellectual entertainments.

In the decades following the American Revolution, however, some coffeehouse functions-such as banking and maritime insurance-had developed into separate industries. Early coffeehouses primarily served the needs of traders and mariners, acting as crucial centers of commerce. Their purpose, however, changed in important ways as the eighteenth century progressed. Philadelphia’s first coffeehouse opened in 1703, and by mid-century half a dozen operated within the city limits.

Philadelphia, the Place that Loves You Back.

Lucille cook fever 1793 coffee house