The Coleman Memorial Chapel in Brickerville invites the community to its 150th anniversary celebration of the laying of its cornerstone. The celebratory activities will take place on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 24-25, at two venues, rain or shine.
Community members will have the opportunity to attend all of these activities for free, with the exception of Steigel-Coleman Mansion tours. Donations, which support the maintenance of the chapel, will be accepted.
Guests are asked to bring their own lawn chairs. Food and beverages will be available for purchase on Saturday.
On Saturday, the celebration will kick off at 10 a.m. at Coleman Memorial Chapel, 1980 Furnace Hills Pike, Lititz, with the chapel opening its doors to the community for self-guided tours. Also at that hour, Floyd Foster, a country gospel singer, will perform at the pavilion.
At 10:30 a.m., there will be a guided tour of the chapel. Half an hour later, KooKoo the Cartoon Magician will feature cartoon antics and traditional magic tricks in his child-friendly performance in the chapel fellowship room.
At noon, the Keystone Baseball Club of Harrisburg and the Hunkey Dora Baseball Club of Lansdale will present two games of 19th-century baseball on the field beside the pavilion.
At 1 p.m., Chris Ivey, a character juggler, will bring two decades of experience in entertainment to his family-friendly performance at the chapel sanctuary. Following the performance, there will be a window of time in which community members can take a self-guided tour of the chapel if they have not already done so.
At 3 p.m., the council of the Coleman Memorial Chapel will meet at the chapel to reenact the events of the cornerstone laying service that took place Aug. 26, 1874, at what was then known as Elizabeth Farms Chapel. But this time, they will remove and open a time capsule that is inside the cornerstone.
At 4 p.m., there will be a guided tour of the chapel until 5 p.m. as the last activity of the day.
Then, on Sunday, a morning worship service will start at 10:15 a.m. at Coleman Memorial Chapel. It will feature the rededication of the chapel and the serving of communion with the original dishes from 1877. The chapel will stay open to the community for self-guided tours until 12:30 p.m.
The celebration will continue later that day at Elizabeth Furnace, 2121 Furnace Hills Pike, Lititz, with the grounds open to the community for self-guided tours from 1 to 5 p.m.
During that timeframe, the first floor of the Steigel-Coleman Mansion will open its doors to community members with tickets, which cost $5, for self-guided tours. Tickets to tour the mansion, which has served as home for seven generations of Colemans, will be available for purchase at the chapel on Saturday or at the mansion doors on Sunday.
Also, starting at 1 p.m., there will be a series of presentations in the air-conditioned stable. James L. Polczynski, author of Souls of Iron, will present the story of the multigenerational Coleman family iron mining and manufacturing dynasty in central Pennsylvania.
Read More: Local author’s new book covers over 150 years of Coleman family history
At 2 p.m., Dan Snyder will present a program about archeology work at the furnace. Jeff Driesbach started the work about 21 years ago and was later joined by Snyder and numerous volunteers. Together, they uncovered ruins of the iron furnace, sections of additional buildings, and thousands of artifacts.
At 3 p.m., Cory Van Brookhoven, author of Mysterious Lititz Ghosts, True Crime, UFOs and More, will present the new book and its lesser-known tales of the supernatural, crime, and the unexplained from local sites.
So, what is the connection between the two venues and Lebanon?
George Banadale Dawson, a cousin of the Arborfield Dawsons, was the father of Harriet, who married James Coleman, the proprietor of Elizabeth Furnace. George Dawson Coleman was one of Harriet and James’ children.
In the 1840s, Coleman, along with his brother, Robert, built the North Lebanon Furnaces. Coleman became the head of the Lebanon branch of the Coleman family’s dynasty and built a mansion in what is now known as Coleman Memorial Park.
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Coleman, along with his wife, Deborah, also built the Coleman Memorial Chapel (originally known as the Elizabeth Farms Chapel) in memory of their son, James Coleman, who died at the age of 14 after being thrown from a horse. James is buried at Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia.
On May 25, 1850, Coleman, along with William Coleman, founded the North Lebanon Railroad. In 1855, the two opened the railroad, which connected the Cornwall ore mines to the Union Canal towpath, for business. In 1870, it became the Cornwall Railroad.
Then, in 1881, Robert Habersham Coleman attempted to purchase the Cornwall Railroad from his cousin, William Coleman Freeman. The lack of sale resulted in the start of a business and personal rivalry between the two.
Read More: Once at risk, the Cornwall & Lebanon Railroad Station is a historic gem
Coleman also had connections to two U.S. presidents: Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant.
Read More: This Presidents’ Day, remembering Lebanon’s links to our country’s highest elected office
As for Coleman’s connection to Lincoln, contractor Harold E. Moody was contracted to demolish the Coleman Memorial Park mansion. As part of his contract, Moody was allowed to keep or sell whatever he found in the mansion.
During the demolition, Moody found a safe that contained a letter from Lincoln to Coleman. In the letter, which was written on Sept. 12, 1861, Lincoln appointed Coleman to an 1862 Industry of All Nations Exhibition commission.
Moody sold the letter to Rick Abel’s company, Abel & Son Roofing and Siding. Later, the company donated the letter to the Lebanon County Historical Society, which put it on display in 2017.
As for Coleman’s connection to Grant, Coleman hosted Grant on the two to three occasions that he visited Lebanon County. He is said to have toured industrial sites such as Light Bro.’s Rolling Mills, Lebanon Paper Mills, Donaghmore Furnace, and Weimer Machine Works.
These connections might have arisen partially due to Coleman’s investment in the Union’s success in the Civil War. Coleman was nicknamed the “Father of the Regiment” after paying for the 93rd’s uniforms, equipment, and flags. The 93rd’s camp was also named Camp Coleman in his memory.
Read More: ‘Everyone in Lebanon can be proud’ of the 93rd Regiment’s role in the Civil War
Coleman was also responsible for building the former Christ Presbyterian Church, 1300 W. Maple St., which has since been converted into the True Life Youth Center.
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