Commemorative Plaque Returns to Franklin and Marshall College


Posted on by Dr. James McMahon

Honoring the Founding of Franklin College, 1787

In October 1937, Dr. Herbert H. Beck, Professor of Chemistry at Franklin and Marshall College and President of the Lancaster County Historical Society (precursor to LancasterHistory), presented a bronze plaque to the college from the historical society in honor of the 150th anniversary of the founding of Franklin College in 1787. At the same time, the plaque (referred to as a tablet by the historical society) was intended to honor the sesquicentennial of the United States Constitution written that same year. In 1853, Franklin College merged with Marshall College, founded in 1837 in Mercersburg, to form Franklin and Marshall College.

Bronze plaque honoring the sesquicentennial of Franklin College, 1937. 24” in width by 36” in height. Weight of 77.8 lbs. LancasterHistory.

 

The plaque reads:

FRANKLIN COLLEGE / FOUNDED IN 1787 / WHICH IN 1853 BECAME / FRANKLIN AND MARSHALL / HAD ON ITS ORIGINAL / BOARD OF TRUSTEES / THOMAS MCKEAN / BENJAMIN RUSH / ROBERT MORRIS / GEORGE CLYMER / AND ITS PATRON / BENJAMIN FRANKLIN / SIGNERS OF THE / DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE / AND THE LAST THREE AND / THOMAS MIFFLIN WHO WERE MEMBERS / OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION

ERECTED IN CELEBRATION OF THE / JOINT SESQUICENTENNIAL OF THE / CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES / AND THE COLLEGE

BY THE / LANCASTER COUNTY / HISTORICAL SOCIETY / 1937

 

 

Dedication of the Franklin College Plaque

The dedication of the Franklin College plaque took place during a four-day celebration in honor of the sesquicentennial lasting from October 14 through October 17. October 16, designated as Alumni Day, included the dedication of the Keiper Liberal Arts Building as well as the unveiling of the sesquicentennial plaque. The names on the plaque honored signers of the Declaration of Independence and members of the Constitutional Convention who were trustees of Franklin College.

The ceremony took place at 11:45am by the main entrance of the Keiper Liberal Arts Building. Dr. Benjamin Franklin Fackenthal, Jr., President of the Board of Trustees, accepted the plaque on behalf of the college. The tablet was unveiled by Louise Wallace, a direct descendent of Benjamin Franklin. Soon after, the plaque was installed on the lower right column of the front gate flanking the College Avenue entrance to Old Main.

Hidden In Plain Sight

Bronze plaque on brick column
Original location of the Franklin College Plaque, lower right column of the front gate, no date. Archives & Special Collections, Franklin & Marshall College.

Although the historical record is vague, the plaque was most likely removed from the lower right column of the front gate around 1975 when both sides of the front gate were refurbished and renamed the Henry Marshall Gate in honor of Henry Marshall, Class of 1919.

At that time, the brick work on the gate was repointed and lighting installed on the upper two columns of each gate. A new plaque was installed under the light fixture on each column—one on the left to honor Henry Marshall and one on the right with the simple inscription “FRANKLIN AND MARSHALL COLLEGE / FOUNDED 1787.”

How the plaque ended up in storage at LancasterHistory is a bit of a mystery. While there is no mention of the plaque being returned to the historical society at the time of the gate refurbishing, it seems likely that it was offered to the society for safekeeping at that time. Its recent rediscovery in our onsite climate controlled collections storage facility prompted LancasterHistory to reach out to Franklin and Marshall College in an effort to learn more about the history of the plaque. That dialogue resulted in the return of the plaque to the college—85 years after it was originally presented to the college—where plans are underway to determine an appropriate place of honor to once again display the plaque.

Color photograph of the main entrance to F&M showing brick columns on either side of a driveway
The Henry Marshall Gate, fall 2022 showing the location of the 1975 plaques on the upper columns. The 1937 Franklin College plaque was originally installed on the lower column, right side. Old Main in the background. Photograph by the author.

For more information on the dedication of the plaque see:
“The Unveiling of the Tablet Commemorating the Joint Sesqui-Centennial of the Constitution of the United States and Franklin College by Dr. Horace R. Barnes. 1937. The Journal of the Lancaster County Historical Society. Vol. 41, No.7, pp. 173-181.  The Journal article can be found here.

 

From Object Lessons