A Short History
The Franklin Inn Club
The Franklin Inn Club was founded in 1902 at 1218 Chancellor Street when nine Philadelphia cultural leaders met at the University Club to create a permanent city setting for the pleasures of dining and conversation. The Inn moved to its present location in 1907, when it bought and combined seven small row houses dating from the early 19th century at 205 S. Camac Street,
a charming narrow cartway that housed several quaint Philadelphia institutions and was paved (until recently) with the wooden blocks that were once ubiquitous in Philadelphia as a means of reducing the clip-clop noise from horses’ hooves.
About the Club
The club promotes conversation among its members and guests about local, national and international events, and cultural matters.
The Clubhouse
The 1907 design by the club’s architect, Francis G. Caldwell, reproduced the appearance and ambiance of an inn in Ben Franklin’s time.
Reciprocal Clubs
The Franklin Inn Club maintains reciprocal relationships with clubs in other cities that prize the art of conversation.
Without Freedom of Thought, there can be no such Thing as Wisdom; and no such Thing as publick Liberty, without Freedom of Speech.
– Benjamin Franklin