FOREVER FREE
Scores celebrate Abraham Lincoln statue unveiled in Wilkinsburg
Girl Scouts waving American flags and an Abraham Lincoln impersonator — with top hat, scruffy beard and all — marched to the beat of a drum and trombone down Penn Avenue in Wilkinsburg.
This Saturday morning celebration with patriotic music and decorations honored the borough’s new Abraham Lincoln statue, which was erected at the intersection of Penn Avenue and Ardmore Boulevard on the historic Lincoln Highway. About 75 people came together to unveil the 400-pound bronze statue of the 16th president of the United States.
Numerous speakers reiterated that the 6-foot-4 statue celebrates
Lincoln as the “Great Emancipator.” The statue shows Lincoln deep in thought in the moments before he reads his Emancipation Proclamation speech on Jan. 1, 1863. He’s also holding the document — which proclaimed that slaves were free — in his left hand.
“When we think about the Emancipation Proclamation, it was the beginning, it was a construct, it was a path to free opportunity for people all over this country, regardless of their race, to demonstrate that they were free to be great,” said Jonathan Ray, the executive director of Pittsburgh’s Urban Christian School.
Prominent sculptor Susan Wagner, who designed the statue, took off the red sheet covering it. The Penn Hills native has designed other Pittsburgh staples including the Roberto Clemente, Bill Mazeroski and Willie Stargell statues at PNC Park; the Policeman’s Memorial on the North Shore; and the statue of Dr. Thomas Starzl, the organ transplant pioneer, at the University of Pittsburgh.
Ms.Wagner thanked her friends for helping with the project and said to young creatives in the audience, “Don’t let anyone ever tell you no, that it doesn’t matter. Follow your heart, because it does matter.”
“You have really made me come alive,” cheerfully chipped in Abe Lincoln, played by Kevin Santillo.
The Wilkinsburg Historical Society also presented a plaque named “Forever
Free” to commemorate today’s dedication and Ms. Wagner.
“So often with these beautiful works of art, the person who artistically created them is sort of lost because it’s not labeled,” said Historical Society president Anne Elise Morris. “Well, we decided we weren’t gonna have that happen to ours. We wanted a Wagner for Wilkinsburg, and we got it and we wanted to make sure it was labeled.”
Ms. Morris spearheaded the $70,000 fundraising process to build the statue, which has been publicly displayed at the Wilkinsburg Borough Municipal Building since late February while a black granite base was built.
The new statue replaced anotherLincoln statue that stood at the crossroads of Penn Avenue and Ardmore Boulevard for more than a century before being brought inside the Borough Building two years ago. Pamela Macklin, the Wilkinsburg Council president, said she hopes to make a permanent place in the council chambers to display the old statue.
The celebration attracted people of all ages. Five Girl Scouts from Plum Borough led the crowd in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.
The troop collected coins at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to donate to the statue — ultimately raising $161.34.
Music also played a large role in the ceremony, with back-to-back performances from jazz artist Tania Grubbs of the “The Star-Spangled Banner” and by Chantal Braziel’s rendition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” — which is often referred to as the Black national anthem.