A presidential or political visit is one of the ways in which the United States marks places as uniquely important. A space meriting the pomp and circumstance that accompanies a president, or a place viewed as so particularly American that an aspiring president might want to have their picture taken there, takes on special status in American culture.

Twelve of the last 14 presidents visited Philadelphia’s Independence Hall during their political careers. American politicians often visit sites of great importance to the national character, and Independence Hall is the location of both the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the drafting of the Constitution.

The U.S. has many sacred civil spaces, places that the country looks to when celebrating or reflecting on American identity. Some of these places were established for the express purpose of serving these functions: the National Mall and the U.S. Capitol in Washington and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, built to commemorate the country’s westward expansion.

Some of these places earn this designation through association with history: Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts, sites of significant events in the American Revolution; the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, commemorating American deaths from the Japanese attack that sparked U.S.........

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