The "The Ship Of Inland Commerce & The Bicentennial Celebration!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  My story today dates back to the early 1700s as well as the mid-1970s when the Bicentennial Wagon Train Pilgrimage traveled through the state of Pennsylvania.  Lancaster has been known for many years as the home of the Conestoga Wagon which was thought to have been introduced to the New World by German settlers.  June of 2019 saw me visit a display of local crafts from Colonial America in the town of Lititz, PA.  It was on that Saturday in June that I found an old student of mine who was standing in front of his Conestoga wagon in an alleyway in Lititz.  

Art's Conestoga wagon

Fellow's name was Art Reist and we spent the best part of an hour talking about his Conestoga wagon he was standing next to, and how he takes it to shows around the area to show those who live in the County, as well as visitors to the area, one of the earliest means of transportation.  Art's father, Art Sr., was also a teacher, but was also a wagon master of the Conestoga wagon.  His booklet titled, "Conestoga Wagon, Masterpiece of the Blacksmith", tells of the various seasoned woods such as oak, hickory and black gum which were used in the wagon aa early as 1716.  His book also tells of William Penn being the first to coin the term "Conestoga wagon" in an account book on New Year's Eve of 1717.  

Mr. Reist's book on the Conestoga wagon

Mr. Penn had just purchased one of the vehicles from James Hendricks who lived in what has become the village of Conestoga, thus the name!  The wagons evolved from one-horse teams to teams of up to six horses that were capable of carrying tons of freight, even down mountainsides.  The wagons were raised on both ends to prevent spillage of their cargo while traveling over rocky roads.  The front wheels of a Conestoga wagon are smaller than those in the back for easier turning, and all four wheels are wide enough to prevent rutting.  The popular wagons carried most of the settlers and freight that moved westward over the Allegheny Mountains from the time of the Revolution until the middle of the 19th Century.  It was back in 1974 that the Pennsylvania Bicentennial Unit ordered 62 built for a cross country Pilgrimage to celebrate the 1976 Bicentennial.  But, where can you buy, or even build, 62 wagons?  They took their request to the Lancaster County Amish craftsmen.  But, it proved to be too tough for even the Amish wagon builders in such a short period of time.  They eventually found enough wagons from across the country and scheduled a 3,000 mile, coast-to-coast wagon train in 1976.  

The map released and published in the Lancaster New Era
on Tuesday, May 21, 1974 which shows the routes to be
taken by the many Conestoga wagons to their way to
Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.  Click to enlarge.

Each state was to be repre- sented and the wagons were to cross the country on various historic trails after a three month tour of their own states.  They would all meet in Valley forge, Pennsylvania on July 4, 1976 for a three-month encampment.  Besides the state wagons, there were to be five chuck wagons to feed the wagon crews and five show wagons, which were used in celebration and dedication events along the eastward trail.  Citizens who witnessed the event could sign a giant pilgrimage scroll to reaffirm their faith in America.  The scrolls were to be brought to Valley Forge to be enshrined.  It was thought that it would cost $5 million and partial funding was sought from the federal government.  The balance was to be sought from contributions and private sources.  A map of courses across the country was prepared and the event began.  

Wednesday, June 30, 1976 and this wagon train has just
crossed the Columbia/Wrightsville Bridge and heads to
Lancaster.  An estimated 7,000 greeted the wagon train.

On July 3, 1976, 2,500 wagoners and horsemen in the Bicen- tennial Wagon Train began arriving in Valley Forge which is about 20 miles west of Philadelphia, PA.  They had pledges signed by 22 million people who rededicated themselves to the principles of the Declaration of Independence as the wagons passed through their communities, 1,100 in all.  

One of the groups that made their way through Lancaster's
Square.  This was on Thursday, July 1, 1976 and was in
the Lancaster New Era.

All who traveled in the wagons brought fond memories with them of the hundreds of thousands who'd lined the streets while the Conestoga wagons rolled through the towns and cities of the U.S.A.  One wagon that traveled from Blaine, Washington had been on the road since June of 1975.  Many wagons and horses joined the wagon train along the way.  They covered about 20 miles a day, covering 17,000 miles in all 50 states.  

On July 1, 5,000 welcomed this wagon train in Penn
Square in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  Lancaster New Era.

The "official" wagons were parked in a quarter-circle for the rest of the Summer months.  After a few weeks at Valley Forge, the wagons and riders headed back home.  Many of the wagons passed through Lancaster, PA in late June, so they would arrive by July 3 in Valley Forge.  The caravan, or should I say several caravans, of wagons and riders who passed over the Wrightsville/Columbia Bridge which crosses the Susquehanna River at Wrightsville/Columbia was so neat to view.  I can still remember sitting on the east side of the bridge with my children watching the wagons cross the bridge to horn-honking, bell-ringing and even a few fireworks.  And, being one of the estimated 5,000 who yelled and welcomed the wagon trains who passed through Penn Square in the middle of the city of Lancaster was one of my favorite memories.  A real Bi-Centennial celebration so it was.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.