Smallest national park? Kosciuszko, forgotten son of liberty
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — If the hip-hop Broadway smash "Hamilton" can reignite interest in the first U.S. treasury secretary, what will it take to drum up interest in another forgotten hero from America's fight for independence?
The few who do come are a passionate bunch — usually tourists with Polish heritage or history buffs familiar with Kosciuszko's pivotal role in the American Revolution.
[...] he kept busy playing chess, painting and entertaining a steady stream of dignitaries and visitors, including his longtime close friend Thomas Jefferson.
Nearly two centuries after Kosciuszko lived at the boarding house, the building was purchased by Philadelphia philanthropist Edward Piszek, the son of Polish immigrants and co-founder of the Mrs. Paul's frozen fish empire.
Piszek gave the three-story brick row house to the park service, and then bought and donated the home next door to add exhibit space.
The memorial opened in 1976 and occupies just 0.2 acres in the historic Society Hill neighborhood, making it the smallest site in the park service's portfolio.
A park service survey from 2015 showed the memorial welcomed 1,261 visitors, compared with 4.3 million tourists just a few blocks away at Independence National Historical Park, which includes the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.
Only about a half-dozen national parks got fewer visitors than Kosciuszko last year — including a pair of remote sites in Alaska that are accessible only by plane.
[...] Pine Streets, Philadelphia.