Penn Square, in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania, holds the 43-foot Gothic Revival Soldiers and Sailors Monument that rises in front of you. Erected at the northeast intersection of King and Queen Streets and dedicated on July 4, 1874, it was originally meant to honor Lancastrian Union soldiers killed during the American Civil War. Over time it has come to represent those who have served in subsequent American military conflicts as well.
Beneath your feet this spot holds deeper layers of history: the old Lancaster courthouse that once stood here was where the 1744 Treaty of Lancaster between the British and the Iroquois was signed. It is also the exact place where the Second Continental Congress met during the American Revolutionary War on September 27, 1777. That courthouse was built in 1739, burned in 1784, rebuilt in 1787, served as the State House from 1799 to 1812, and then returned to use as the Lancaster County Courthouse until 1852.
The monument itself has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since April 2, 1973. King and Queen Streets converge on this corner, as they did when the Second Continental Congress met here in 1777.