Our Community
Preserving the Lincoln Banner!
Lincoln Banner: The Candidate Photo courtesy of Delaware County Historical Society
Written by Doug Humes
D
uring the contentious election of 1860, with four candidates running for President, each candidate’s backers took to parading through the streets, at night and by torch light, to promote their candidate. Abraham Lincoln’s supporters called themselves the Wide Awakes, and the local chapter in Media marched under a huge banner featuring a clean-shaven Lincoln (he did not grow the beard until after the election), and slogans about preserving the Union. A later description of the banner noted that “The marching club at Media penetrated all sections of the county and engaged in many a miniature riot. In Kellyville [now a part of Clifton Heights – Ed.], it was fired upon by the Democrats who had sworn that the man who had carried a Lincoln banner into that district should not carry it out.” When that account was written, the banner was hanging in the office of the Republican Party in Media, “a relic of the past” with “bullet holes through the folds of it.” When the election votes were tallied in Delaware County, Lincoln received more votes than the three other candidates combined: Lincoln
3,181
63.05%
Breckenridge
1,500
29.73%
Douglas
195
3.87%
Bell
169
3.35%
TOTALS
5,045
100.00%
Lincoln Banner: The County Photo courtesy of Delaware County Historical Society
That Lincoln banner still exists, 160 years later, and is now cared for by the Delaware County Historical Society (DCHS). In 2019 they launched a campaign to raise funds for its preservation, with the ultimate plan being to restore, protect and then display the banner in a clear plexiglass, air-pressurized case so that visitors can view both sides. The restoration work was completed in 2021. The next step is to raise the money for the display work, through the #PENNIES4LINCOLN effort. We are on a roll in Delco! Let’s show that we can come together again to help preserve and display this important piece of Delaware County history. More information about the Lincoln banner preservation project can be found at www.PADelcoHistory.org/ lincoln-banner.
The Wide Awakes on Parade Public Domain
28 Marple Friends & Neighbors / Bringing People Together
For more on the history of Marple and Delaware County, visit the Marple Historical Society website and Facebook page, and join the Society to keep up to date on coming events www.MarpleHistoricalSociety.org. M
