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Uncovering the Legacy of Albert Gallatin at Friendship Hill National Historic Site

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Tucked away in the southwestern corner of the Laurel Highlands is one of Pennsylvania’s most historic homes. Known as Friendship Hill National Historic Site, this was the home of Albert Gallatin, one of the most influential men in American history. And, while Gallatin’s contributions to American history might be little known today, a visit to his Fayette County home offers visitors a chance to learn more about the man and his contributions to the American government.

Gallatin was born in the mid-18th century in Geneva, Switzerland. He immigrated to America in 1780, bouncing between several areas of New England before becoming a French professor at Harvard. He was involved in the buying and selling of land in western Pennsylvania, and purchased the land on which he’d build his home in 1786. He began building his home on a tract of land high above the Monongahela River in 1789.

Albert Gallatin Statue at Friendship Hill National Historic Site in the Pennsylvania Laurel Highlands
A statue of Albert Gallatin welcomes visitors to Friendship Hill National Historic Site.

Friendship Hill was on the edges of the wilderness when Gallatin built his home, and so he established the community of New Geneva near his home in 1798. His goal was to provide a new home for Europeans fleeing the French Revolution, much as French Azilum in northeastern Pennsylvania did, as well as providing a community near his home. However, the new community never took off, though there is still a small population living in the area today.

The first building was a Federalist-style brick home. Over the years, Gallatin and future owners added various additions to the home, creating a somewhat mishmash-style of architectural features. The last addition to the home was added in 1903, and the home was opened as a national historical site in 1976.

Friendship Hill National Historic Site in Pennsylvania's Laurel Highlands.
Friendship Hill National Historic Site. The original portion of the home is on the left side of the home.

Visitors to the home can take a self-guided audio tour through the home to learn more about the home and Gallatin’s impact on the United States. During his time as the owner of the home, Gallatin served as a US Senator and Representative and the US Ambassador to both France and the United Kingdom. However, what Gallatin is most widely remembered for is his tenure as the Secretary of the Treasury.

Gallatin served in this position from 1801-1814, during the administrations of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. His 13-year career makes him the longest serving Treasury Secretary in US history. During his tenure, Gallatin was responsible for the Louisiana Purchase, the first time in US history that the federal government acquired land, and helping Lewis and Clark plan their expedition (which, incidentally really left from Pittsburgh, not St. Louis).

As visitors tour through the home, the provided audio tour tells about the function of the room, the history of the home, and Gallatin’s importance to American history. One interesting anecdote told is the story of the Marquis de Lafayette’s visit to the home in 1825 during his tour of American. Shortly after Lafayette’s visit, Gallatin left the home, and eventually sold it in 1832. As much as Gallatin loved the home, his second wife was not accustomed to life outside of the city.

Inside Friendship Hill National Historic Site in the Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania
One of the most decorated rooms at Friendship Hill National Historic Site.

The home is sparsely furnished, but the chance to learn more about one of America’s forgotten early leaders makes a visit well worth your time, especially if you already find yourself in Fayette County, Greene County, or elsewhere in southwestern Pennsylvania.

Before leaving the area, take some time to stroll the grounds of Friendship Hill National Historic Site. There are more than nine miles of trails that crisscross the 600 acres at the site. One interesting destination is the gravesite of Albert Gallatin’s first wife, who died after just five years of marriage in 1789. The walk to the gravesite takes you past some of the estate’s most beautiful land and offers views over the Monongahela River.

Monongahela River from Friendship Hill National Historic Site in Fayette County, Pennsylvania.
Overlooking the Monongahela River from the grounds of Friendship Hill National Historic Site.

Friendship Hill National Historic Site might not make many lists of must-visit destinations in Pennsylvania. However, those interested in learning about the history of early America will no doubt enjoy a visit to the site.


Friendship Hill National Historic Site

Hours: 9am-5pm
Open Daily May-September
Open Weekends October-April

Cost: Free

Website: NPS.gov/FRHI

Address: 223 New Geneva Road
Point Marion, PA 15474

 

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Great places to stay in Fayette County


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4 thoughts on “Uncovering the Legacy of Albert Gallatin at Friendship Hill National Historic Site”

  1. my name is melvin hopwood my dad was william r hopwood he was born in hopwood pa in 1895 i was told i am related to john hopwood who founded hopwood pa. i was also told that george washington and john hopwood were friends and general washington gave the tract of land to john hopwood to start a settlement.i don t know how true it is but thats what i was told.i also graduated from albert gallatin senior high school in 1971.southwestern pa.is a historical place to visit. to learn of the people and the way odf life.

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  2. While it’s true that technically Gallatin was a senator, it would be useful to note that he never really served in that capacity as he was bounced from the Senate after less than three months due to him not having met the needed years of citizenship required to be a senator. He also made a brief poorly chosen attempt at running for VP in 1823 and had a large hand in the founding of NYU.

    When I visited the ranger there said that while the NPS acquired the property in the 70’s it didn’t open for visitors until 1983 (that’s backed up by data on nps.gov which lists every park’s attendance by year since each opened) which is very common as it takes the NPS years if not close to a decade for most parks to fully open for visitation due to a perpetual lack of funding (like in Delaware which had First State National Park created three years ago but all of the sites are still run by the state of Delaware and likely won’t have full NPS ranger coverage, programming or support this decade due to a lack of funding).

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  3. With all due respect, Jim, Abraham Alfonse Albert Gallatin was the furthest thing from a “founding father”. As a matter of fact, he openly opposed the U.S. Constitution because he feared the loss of individual freedoms and openly spoke of the U.S. instituting a monarchy rule. This is well recorded historic fact.

    Reply
    • The National Park Service calls him a Founding Father right on the homepage for Friendship Hill. Not all of the Founding Fathers agreed on everything. In fact, they had some very large disagreements that desired to take the new country in many different directions. The term doesn’t just refer to those who were in favor of the Constitution, though. It is used to refer to all the men that had a large impact on the earliest days of the country, which Albert Gallatin certainly did. The term is definitely appropriate to use in describing Gallatin.

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