“Thirteen Original Colonies Bicentennial Covered Wagon Train”
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The state of Pennsylvania authorized the “Thirteen Original Colonies Bicentennial Covered Wagon Train” as an official Bicentennial project. It was one of five such trains that traveled across the country to reach Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, for the 1976 July fourth Independence Day celebration, after having scouted ahead for overnight stops, the wagon train left Stone Mountain, Georgia, on April 1, 1976 under the direction of Pensacola, Florida native Harry Lee. When it arrived to the South Carolina border, the convoy was joined by State Wagon Master Dr. Larry Hudson and wagon teamsters Hennison Hartley and Woody Drury, as well as other South Carolinians. During the two week journey through the state, the caravan made several stops in Chester County where local horse enthusiasts joined on horseback and in wagons. Lewisville Mayor John B. McCrorey welcomed the group on May 6 as they camped overnight at the high school football field. The next day the wagon train traveled to the town park in Lowrys where they were greeted by Mayor Marion E. Johnson and other townspeople. Members of the North Chester Saddle Club dressed in period costumes to greet the visitors, while others held a quilting bee, demonstrated lye soap making, displayed antiques and patriotic quilts and served homemade vegetable soup from an old iron pot to commemorate the bicentennial celebration. Lowrys Thursday Afternoon Book Club held an open house and dedicated the newly restored Circulating Free Library. An exhibition of arrow points, artifacts, implements and relics from the Robert J. Shannon Collection was displayed. To add to the festivities, seven Penn State University students who were traveling with the wagon train presented a 45-minute musical despite a downpour. Local residents who rode with the wagon train at various points along the way to Valley Forge included William and Betty Stephenson and their daughters Bonnie and Sherry, Neely Dove, along with Frank and Frances Stephenson. William and family finished the 6 week journey of the wagon train from Clarksville, Virginia to Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Neely and wife Laverne, help look after their farm while they were away. On July 4, 1976, President Gerald Ford reviewed the state wagons and documents of signatures reaffirming the principles upon which America was founded. To keep the memory of that historic journey alive, members of the “Thirteen Original Colonies Bicentennial Covered Wagon Train” hold a reunion with a different state hosting the event each year.
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Lowrys Old Fashioned Christmas Parade
Featuring Unique Horse & Tractor Drawn Entries & Handmade Floats
25th Anniversary
Original Coordinators: Nancy Stephenson Stewart, William Hall Stephenson
Started in December 1982
Marker is on South Carolina Route 909, on the right when traveling north.
Courtesy hmdb.org
