[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 16057-16058]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             A TRIBUTE TO THE UNION LEAGUE OF PHILADELPHIA

                                  _____
                                 

                          HON. ROBERT A. BRADY

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, November 30, 2012

  Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
Union League of Philadelphia which will commemorate its 
Sesquicentennial Celebration on December 27, 2012. This occasion will 
reflect on the great history and traditions that have helped sustain 
the League, and have made it one of the great civic institutions in 
Philadelphia.
  In late 1862, during some of the darkest and most turbulent days of 
America's Civil War, a group of patriotic Philadelphians resolved to 
create an organization to assist President Abraham Lincoln and the 
North to save the American Union. By early 1863 The Union League of 
Philadelphia was diligently printing and distributing anti-secession 
literature, financing military regiments, and devoting its talent and 
resources to the protection of southern Pennsylvania and the City of 
Philadelphia from the menace of invasion. Following the northern 
victory in April of 1865, the Union League found a new and continuing 
purpose as it demonstrated its support for Reconstruction legislation 
and new amendments

[[Page 16058]]

 to the U.S. Constitution, positive political action, and election 
reform.
  Into the twentieth century and the present day, the legacy of the 
Union League includes an outstanding record of 150 years of civic, 
philanthropic, and cultural activities. Today, its 3,300 members 
continue to sustain the Union League and its ethos of patriotism and 
service.
  Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to join me in honoring the 
Union League of Philadelphia for its 150 years of service to the city 
of Philadelphia and the Union.

                          ____________________