The "The Lady Has Returned" Story

The copper Lady Justice in Lancaster, PA

It was an ordinary guy.  Standing in front of Lady Justice, the iconic symbol of justice, in the first block of North Duke Street in Lancaster, PA.  The Lady looks gorgeous once again, standing behind the chain-link fence and holding her scales in her left hand and sword in her right hand. She is one of a few statues of Lady justice, mounted on a courthouse, that is not blindfolded.  The nine-foot-tall copper statue had been standing atop the Lancaster County Courthouse for 85 years and had deteriorated and turned green from oxidation due to the elements during those years.  Hey, haven't we all.  It was back in early October that she was removed from the courthouse dome and sent to Philadelphia for restoration.  

An early postcard showing the Lancaster County Courthouse
with the dome and Lady Justice atop it.  I'm not sure of the
date of the postcard so the statue may be wood or copper.

She had stood atop the dome since the removal of the original Lady Justice in 1929.  The original wooden statue had been in place on the top of the dome since the courthouse had been erected in 1854.  After returning from Philadelphia a few days ago, she was placed in a chain-link area until the dome restoration is completed sometime in the near future.  

Scaffolding surrounds the courthouse dome.

The dome had suffered water damage and also was in need of repair.  The dome still is surrounded by a skeleton of scaffolding which should be removed in a few months.  The courthouse main entrance is located at 43 E. King Street and is constructed of  beautiful cut stone. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 and has a linage of fine architects over the years including Lancaster's own C. Emlen Urban who designed many of downtown Lancaster's other buildings.  I'm anxious to see Lady Justice take her stand once again looking down on Lancaster and yielding her scale and sword once again.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The historical sign sits next to Lady Justice inside her chain-link surroundings.

A Civil War re-enactor takes a photo of Lady Justice.