The "Oh! The Sweet Smell Of Printer's Ink: Part III - Hail To The Chief" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Posting my third story related to the 225th Anniversary of LPN, Lancaster, Pennsylvania's newspaper provider.  Today's story deals with the many Presidential visits to Lancaster that the newspaper has covered over it's lifetime.  A few of the stories tell of  Presidential arrivals at the Lancaster airport which has limited commercial flights that land and depart due in part to size restrictions, but is still considered the fourth busiest airport in the state.  But, at times large planes do land at the Lancaster Airport.  One such plane was Air Force One which landed at Lancaster Airport in October of 2004 with President George W. Bush aboard.  Read on to see some of the Presidents and Presidential hopefuls who have arrived by plane, train or automobile and made the newspaper the next day.  On August 14, 1849 President  Zachary Taylor made a visit to Lancaster as reported in The Lancaster Intelligencer.  His visit was brief, staying in town for one day at the Swam Hotel which was located at Queen and Vine Streets.  Lancaster did not provide a welcoming attitude for the President, even though he was said to have come down with a digestive ailment due to the local water and the entire visit was labeled as "dull".  It was also reported in the paper that a half-hour after he left town the President and his visit were both forgotten.  According to The Lancaster Intelligencer, on July 5, 1913 President Woodrow Wilson made a visit to Lancaster.  He had made a train stop the day before in Gettysburg to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg.  Upon arrival in downtown Lancaster, to a sparse crowd due to no previous notice of his arrival, President Wilson shook hands with those who climbed onto the train platform to greet him.  

President Franklin D. Roosevelt arrives in downtown, 1934.

The Lancaster New Era reported on May 31, 1934 that President Franklin D. Roosevelt spoke from the caboose of his train which was headed from Gettysburg to New York.  They published his full remarks including the part where he told those in attendance at the Lancaster Train Station that he always thought of Lancaster County as one of the great agriculture counties of the nation.  After his brief speech on the platform of the train's caboose, he gave a wave and went back into the train as they left the station.  

Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy makes a visit.

 The Lancaster New Era also reported that Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy arrived in Lancaster in September of 1960 to over 10,000 where he give a speech from a flatbed truck in front of the Fulton Bank in downtown Lancaster.  Shortly before he gave his nine-minute speech, a 64-year-old women was trampled by the large crowd and was taken inside the bank.  Kennedy demanded that his motorcade stop so he could enter the bank to comfort her.  He apologized before heading back to his motorcade.  Her only request was that Kennedy notify her sister of the accident.  I was in attendance at the rally that day in 1960.  I skipped school to attend the rally that I will never forget.  

Richard Nixon talks with Amish during a visit to Lancaster.

On October 19, 1970 the Intelligencer Journal reported on President Richard Nixon's arrival at the Lancaster Airport to the north of the city of Lancaster.  He arrived to what was said to be anywhere between 5,000 to 40,000 people who listened to Nixon talk about Republican candidates running for re-election.  His speech helped a few candidates, but also did not influence others.  Four years later one of those candidates had to inform the President that he had lost the support of the party.  Calls of "Four more years" filled the air at Millersville University On October 28, 1984 when President Ronald Reagan came to talk to a raucous crowd of 9,000.  103 year-old H. Louise Souder and 19 year-old Julie Templin both attended the rally.  Mrs. Souder sat in front of the President while Ms. Templin presented him with a bouquet of roses.  Julie was a Millersville student who was a leukemia survivor and Louise served as the chaplain of the Women's Republican Club of Lancaster.  Julie asked the Prez for a hug and he complied.  The event was reported in the Lancaster New Era on October 29, 1984.  "Bush's vow to end the U.S. drug epidemic draws cheers at CV" ran across the front of the Lancaster New Era on March 22, 1989.  George H.W. Bush had just won the Presidential election a few months before he arrived in Lancaster to talk at Conestoga Valley High School about drug abuse.   The newspaper stated that after his speech at the school he made a visit to talk with Amish and Mennonite leaders to find how they prevented drug abuse in their communities.  

President George W. Bush arrives at Lancaster Airport.

Finally on October 26 of 2004, the Lancaster New Era said that President George W. Bush arrived at the Lancaster Airport to talk with supporters and detractors.  His Air Force One was the largest plane to ever land at the airport in it's history.  The crowd and airplane drew my attention as I stopped to see the event.  From his platform at the airport he probably could see the 30 protesters who were standing in the "Free Speech Zone" as they were surrounded with 72 American flag-covered coffins who represented the Pennsylvanians who had lost their lives in the Iraq War.  Now, there was one more event that was reported on September 5, 2008 in the Lancaster New Era.  

Barach Obama speaks to the crowd at Buchanan Park.
I'm the one in the blue shirt directly above his head.

About 15,000 Lancastrians arrived at Lancaster's Buchanan Park to see the Democratic Party's newly nominated candidate for President.  I can still remember that evening as if it happened yesterday.  My wife, Carol, and her friend Debbie accompanied me as we parked a few blocks from the park and wound our way into the park.  Obama spoke to the crowd as he stood near the tennis courts in white shirt and black pants.  Just getting to see the three politicians in person was a moving and unforgettable experience in my life.  Perhaps those who live nearby and are reading this story may remember, along with me, the excitement and history that goes with the sighting of a special personality.  It as another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.