The "Celebrating The 'Great Commoner' - The Celebration" Story

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It was an ordinary day.  Recently celebrated the 150 anniversary of the death of one of Lancaster, Pennsylvania's most famous politicians, Thaddeus Stevens.  The more I read and hear about this gentleman, the more I like him.  So glad my wife and I named our third child, a Bi-Centennial addition, Paul Thadeus after both my father and Lancaster's political hero.  It was back in August of 1868 that he died in Washington, D.C. and laid in state in the Capitol Rotunda for two days before being returned to Lancaster to be buried in the Shreiner-Concord Cemetery on the corner of Mulberry and Chestnut Streets in downtown Lancaster.  He was only the third person ever to have had his body lay in state at the Capitol.  He had picked this cemetery since it was integrated and integration was key to Stevens, a seven-term congressman who was the driving force behind the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments which were known as the Civil War Amendments and were designed to ensure the equality for recently emancipated slaves.  

The tombstone of Thaddeus Stevens, the "Great Commoner".

At a recent ceremony at the cemetery, several local residents spoke about Stevens to the crowd.  One man told of being raised in the segregated South and said he only learned of Stevens' role in history after moving to Lancaster and stumbling upon his tomb in the cemetery and reading the inscription explaining why he chose to be buried there.  A life-long Lancastrian told of writing his senior thesis on Stevens and concluded that "The fight is not done."  

His home on South Queen Street.

He was known to all as the "Great Commoner" for his commitment to abolishing prejudice based on race and other factors.  Stevens also was a powerful advocate of free pubic education.  Over 20,000 people, about half being African-Americans, attended his funeral in 1868 with his fame rivaling that of Abraham Lincoln.   His body was laid in state at his South Queen Street residence where "great numbers of citizens filed past."  The streets around the residence were packed for days.  The recent celebration at the Shreiner-Concord Cemetery had a color guard of Civil War re-enactors from the 53rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Co. on hand as well as a musician who performed his song, "Ballad of Thaddeus Stevens" and a local theatre professor who portrayed Stevens in a short musical and dramatic presentation to illuminate his life and work.  

State historical plaque telling of Thaddeus Stevens.

Copies of a commem- orative book and coin celebrating the 14th Amendment were handed out to all in attendance.  I have visited the cemetery many times and have shared photos and stories before about Thaddeus Stevens, but I was so sorry to miss the recent celebration.  It is truly moving to stand silent and alone before his tomb and picture in your mind what this wonderful human being must have been like.  Tomorrow I will complete my story with a few bits of trivia and stories telling how he was a master of political put-down.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.