Peterson's Ambitious Plans

Peterson's responsibilities, however, went far beyond research, to include physical planning and architectural design. He made studies of the Second Bank of the United States (Old Custom House), to which the American Philosophical Society had proposed moving its library. Adaptation of the building to this use was impractical, he found; the library simply could not be fitted in. As the time when the National Park Service would assume administrative and interpretive control of Independence Square grew closer, Peterson worked on preliminary plans for adapting the first floor of the United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company's building on Fifth Street as a temporary auditorium and offices, and on designing restrooms for the basement of the west wing of Independence Hall. He also conferred with representatives of the Garden Clubs of America, who had assembled a collection of magnolia trees, one from each of the forty-eight states, for possible donation to the park. This would be the first major gift to Independence from an outside group. But it was at Area B, between Walnut and Manning Streets, that Peterson's ideas of what the park should be were most clearly revealed. He drew up a preliminary site plan showing eleven houses to be rehabilitated for use as staff quarters. Clearly Peterson viewed Independence as incorporating preservation on a scale far greater than specified in the authorizing legislation. His view went beyond the restoration of a handful of historic buildings to preservation of the historic ambience of the entire area and the integration of the National Park Service's project with the existing neighborhood.

At the end of the first full year of operation, major changes in the management of Independence became essential. The land acquisition program was well under way; research had begun. On January 1, 1951, the project staff would assume responsibility for several historic properties: the city's buildings on Independence Square, the Second Bank, and the Deshler-Morris House in Germantown. In 1948 the National Park Service had learned that this last property was being offered as a donation to the federal government by its last private owners, the heirs of Marriott C. Morris. It was a gift that the park service, severely pressed for funds, was reluctant to accept. George Washington had rented the house as a summer residence twice during the 1790s. Fiske Kimball considered it a fine example of a Germantown roadside house. Nevertheless, as Roy Appleman suggested, there was already a superabundance of memorials to Washington. Francis Ronalds, who, although he was at Morristown, also then had administrative responsibility for the National Park Service's holdings in Philadelphia, recommended that it become a part of Independence, provided that a cooperative agreement could be negotiated under which the Germantown Historical Society would maintain and operate the house. When Congress amended the 1949 Interior appropriations bill to include a sum for maintenance of the property, the park service had no choice. It accepted the property and negotiated an agreement along the lines laid out by Ronalds. This enabled the park service to use the appropriated money for needed repairs to the property, which the society would then maintain and operate.

Caring for these properties and interpreting them to the public would require a considerably larger operation in Philadelphia. The added responsibility would also necessitate augmentation of the slender professional staff and reorganization of the project office. It was not practical for the project manager, who had been selected for his skill in real estate negotiation, to supervise the necessary professional and administrative personnel. Independence had reached the stage at which an acting superintendent should be designated. Assistant Project Manager Anderson was named to the post on November 15, 1950. It was a surprising appointment. just as it was customary that personnel carrying out land acquisition were not National Park Service career people, it was usual, by this period, for superintendents to come up through the ranks. Several candidates within the park service had been considered, including Peterson. Arthur E. Demaray, then associate director, while later discussing a number of appointments and promotions with George A. Palmer, then superintendent at Hyde Park, said that he had appointed Anderson at the request of Secretary of the Interior Chapman.

Although he was not a National Park Service career man and was not always entirely familiar with policies and procedures, Anderson had certain qualifications for the job. With a square-jawed, ruddy face, a shock of prematurely white hair, and the trim, erect bearing of a former athlete, he looked like a leader. Despite an innate reserve, he had a pleasant, appealing voice and low-keyed manner. He was reasonable and willing to listen but firm in upholding decisions. Most importantly, he got along well with judge Lewis.