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|date=December 12, 1787 (2nd)
|date=December 12, 1787 (2nd)
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'''Pennsylvania''' was one of the original thirteen colonies. It was founded by [[William Penn]],who wanted a place where [[Quaker]]s and other denominations could worship freely without persecution (being a Quaker was illegal in England at the time. Pennsylvania is now a US state. Its capital is [[Harrisburg]] and it borders [[Ohio]], [[Maryland]], [[New York]], [[New Jersey]], [[Delaware]], and [[West Virginia]].
'''Pennsylvania''' was one of the original thirteen colonies. It is now a US state. Its capital is [[Harrisburg]] and it borders [[Ohio]], [[Maryland]], [[New York]], [[New Jersey]], [[Delaware]], and [[West Virginia]].
==Religious tolerance==
==Religious tolerance==
The colony was founded and owned by [[William Penn]], an English Quaker who wanted a place where [[Quaker]]s and other denominations could worship freely without persecution. The first Colonial Legislative Act, the Great Law of Pennsylvania, December 7, 1682, mandated: <blockquote>"That no person ... who shall confess and acknowledge one Almighty God
to be the Creator, Upholder and Ruler of the World ... shall in any case be molested or prejudiced for his, or her Conscientious persuasion or practice." <ref>http://www.docheritage.state.pa.us/documents/constitutiontrans.asp</ref></blockquote>
to be the Creator, Upholder and Ruler of the World ... shall in any case be molested or prejudiced for his, or her Conscientious persuasion or practice." <ref>http://www.docheritage.state.pa.us/documents/constitutiontrans.asp</ref></blockquote>
The [[Continental Congress]] met in Philadelphia, the largest city in Pennsylvania, and at the time, the largest city in any of the colonies. The [[Declaration of Independence]] was signed there, the [[Liberty Bell]] is there, and the [[Continental Army]] spent the winter of 1777 at Valley Forge in Pennsylvania. The [[Constitution of the United States|American Constitution]] was written in [[Philadelphia]], and the United States Capitol was once there. Pennsylvania was the 2nd State to join [[United States of America|the Union]] on December 12, 1787.
[[Benjamin Franklin]] helped write Pennsylvania's 1776 Constitution. In Frame of Government, Chapter 2, Section 10, it states: "Each member of the legislature, before he takes his seat, shall make and subscribe the following declaration: 'I do believe in one God, the Creator and Governor of the Universe, the Rewarder of the good and Punisher of the wicked, and I do acknowledge the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by Divine Inspiration.'"
==18th century==
Quakers came to the Philadelphia area, where many became successful merchants, handling the long-distance trade to London and other parts of the British Empire. Pennsylvania attracted large numbers of Germans, including Lutherans and many smaller sects. They were farmers in the southeast. Scots-Irish (mostly Presbyterians) settled the frontier regions.
The [[Continental Congress]] met in Philadelphia, the largest city in Pennsylvania, and at the time, the largest city in any of the colonies. The [[Declaration of Independence]] was signed there, the [[Liberty Bell]] is there, and the [[Continental Army]] spent the winter of 1777 at Valley Forge in Pennsylvania. The [[Constitution of the United States|American Constitution]] was written in [[Philadelphia]]. Pennsylvania was the 2nd State to join [[United States of America|the Union]] on December 12, 1787.
==Major Cities==
==Major Cities==
== References ==
== References ==
<References/>
<References/>
{{USstates}}
{{USstates}}
[[Category:States of the United States]]
[[Category:States of the United States]]