The President's House was a mansion built from 1792 to 1797 by the Government of Pennsylvania and located on Ninth Street, between Market and Chestnut Streets, in Philadelphia, then the temporary national capital. Intended to persuade the federal government to permanently stay in the city, this house intended for the president of the United States never housed any president. In 1800, the property was purchased at public auction by the University of Pennsylvania for use as a new, expanded campus. The university demolished the building in 1829 and replaced it with two new buildings.

The University of Pennsylvania is a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. It is one of nine colonial colleges and was chartered prior to the U.S. Declaration of Independence when Benjamin Franklin, the university's founder and first president, advocated for an educational institution that trained leaders in academia, commerce, and public service. Penn identifies as the fourth oldest institution of higher education in the United States, though this representation is challenged by other universities, as Franklin first convened the board of trustees in 1749, arguably making it the fifth oldest institution of higher education in the U.S.