ith our country’s 250th birthday approaching, there is a lot to be done. The Independence Hall is currently undergoing renovations to prepare for celebrations, and within those walls is an important piece of furniture representing our country’s history: The Rising Sun Chair. The chair is considered “America’s most important piece of furniture.” It was this seat where the father of our country, George Washington, sat at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 to help write the Constitution. There are only two authorized reproductions of this chair, and we are lucky to have one at Lycoming College thanks to Eugene Landon ’57 (1934-2011). After graduating from Lycoming in 1957 with a dual degree in chemistry and biology and a minor in history, Landon decided to turn his woodworking hobby into a career. He had a deep appreciation for the eighteenth century, so much so that he chose to use the original tools and methods that craftsmen from that century would have used, and while he worked, he would listen to Mozart to get him into the right mindset for working on his various projects. He was commissioned to create several pieces, including two Bible boxes presented to President George W. Bush and President Jimmy Carter; busts of President George Washington and President Lincoln; and a giant eagle with an impressive wingspan of six feet, which is shown in the Constitutional Hall in Philadelphia. Even with all these accomplishments, his most profound replica is the Rising Sun Chair. Landon made both reproductions of the chair and donated the second to his alma mater in 2009. The Rising Sun Chair was originally made from mahogany, so Landon used mahogany for both of his replicas. As a secondary wood, he chose white oak, which was commonly used for structural components for buildings and production of furniture in colonial times. The white oak that was used came from a very early Pennsylvania barn, and the nails that were used to secure the chair were from a house built in 1769. All the resources that Landon used further demonstrate his historical knowledge and how dedicated he was to maintaining that historical accuracy. The only difference between the two replicas is the wood that was used for the face of the sun. The chair located in the Constitution Center was made with a piece of wood from the Last Living Liberty Tree, which was located on the campus of St. John’s College in Maryland. The Liberty Tree’s wood is another example of Landon’s appreciation for America’s history since Liberty trees were popular during the time of the Revolutionary War. At Lycoming College, The Rising Sun Chair is used for our presidents to sit on during important College ceremonies such as opening convocation, baccalaureate, and commencement. Those presidents include James E. Douthat, Kent C. Trachte, and now Charles “Chip” Edmonds, who recently took the seat for the first time during his inauguration. Rising Sun THE CHAIR By Julia Bidelspach ’27 A PIECE OF AMERICAN & LYCOMING HISTORY 27 www.lycoming.edu
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