Late June marks pivotal moments in York, Pa.’s, history
Late June has marked several hinge events in the York area.
This weekend’s Patriot observance in York http://www.ydr.com/newsfull/ci_3952025 focuses on the Civil War.
Consider the following tightly bunched moments:
June 27, 1778 — The Continental Congress returned to Philadelphia after a nine-month exile in York. British troops had pushed the nation’s fathers from Philadelphia. This visit put York Town in the national spotlight and left a legacy still viewed with pride in York today.
June 27, 1863 — Jubal Early’s division of the Confederate Army stepped across York County’s western border. The invasion would cover most of the county, reaching the banks of the Susquehanna River. York’s surrender launched a controversy that subsumed other York-area Civil War achievements.
June 27, 1945 — Gen. Jacob Loucks Devers concluded a brief grand return to his hometown. A year before, the four-star general led the invasion of southern France shortly after the Allied D-Day landing in Normandy. V-E Day observances were subdued because fighting in the Pacific continued, but York residents used Devers return to let loose.
June 30, 1887 — Opponents of market sheds in York’s Centre Square demolished the tottering structures in the middle of the night. The demolition of the sheds symbolically marked the beginning of the decline of York’s historic agrarian economy and the early stages of what would become a burgeoning industrial marketplace.
