Cafe Procope, Paris, France
N 48° 51.187 E 002° 20.318
31U E 451484 N 5411338
The Procope was patronized by John Paul Jones, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin.
Waymark Code: WMV92
Location: Île-de-France, France
Date Posted: 10/15/2006
Views: 354
Metro : Odeon. Address : 13, rue de l'Ancienne Comedie, Paris 6e.
A plaque to the left side of the main entrance tells us that the Procope was established in 1686 by a Sicilian Francesco Procopio. It is the oldest cafe in Paris and the first place where coffee was served to the public...The building has changed little since the seventeenth century. The cafe, which is also a restaurant, has been a popular meeting-place over the centuries for writers, philosophers, revolutionaires...and many famous Americans.
When the Comedie Francaise opened just across the street at number 14 in 1689, the cafe attracted writers and theater-goers. After the theater moved to new quarters in 1770, philosphers and revloutionaries took their place...Voltaire, Rousseau, Beaumarchais, Danton, Robespierre. Voltaire's desk can be seen on the second floor. Young Lieutenant Bonaparte left his hat in hock there...as the story goes.
On June 15, 1790, after the National Assembly had adjourned to mourn Benjamin Franklin's death, the "True Friends of Liberty" met at the Procope. Monsieur de la Fite, a lawyer, held a memorial service in front of Franklin's portrait.
(Text taken from "Paris : Birthplace of the U.S.A." by Daniel Jouve, Alice Jourve, and Alvin Grossman.)
Location Type: Building
Reference Web Site: [Web Link]
Established Date: 01/01/1686
Property Type: Private
Fee required: no
Location Notes:
Metro : Odeon. Address : 13, rue de l'Ancienne Comedie, Paris 6e.
Open 09:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. daily.
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