The Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the US Constitution in 1787 were debated here. Their influence makes the building central to constitutional history, but the founding settlement also accommodated slavery and excluded many people from political power. It ranks second because those achievements and contradictions can be studied together in a specific place. The landmark supports a critical history of rights, rather than an assumption that founding ideals were universally realized.
Related reading: United States Capitol, Washington.
Source: Independence Hall, Philadelphia.
Image credit: Mys 721tx · CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized and JPEG compressed.
