Cemetery hosts event honoring vets

Levittown -

At a spot where 166 of the nation's first soldiers were laid to rest, Langhorne celebrated Veterans Day on Wednesday by recalling the country's formative years more than two centuries ago.

Standing at the Revolutionary War Burial Site at South Bellevue and Flowers Avenues, borough Mayor and veteran Chris Blaydon read the words penned by Thomas Paine and used in a speech by George Washington to his troops before the battles of Trenton and Princeton in December 1776 and January 1777.

"These are the times that try men's souls," said Blaydon. "The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered."

Those words are as true today as they were during the conflict that gave birth to this country, said Blaydon.

"They have resonated throughout 230 years of history for all men and women going into battle," he said.

Borough resident and veteran Larry Zetterberg noted the uniqueness of the town's tribute.

"How appropriate that on Veterans Day, we honor these 166 unknown soldiers and, in doing so, also honor all our nation's veterans," he said.

Four buildings in and around Langhorne, then known as Four Lanes End, were used as hospitals before and after the battles of Trenton and Princeton, said Blaydon. Many of the 166 Colonial soldiers buried at South Bellevue and Flowers Avenues died not in battle but from disease and starvation, he added.

"Things at that time were not going well, to say the least," said Zetterberg. "Washington's troops were poorly trained and poorly equipped."

Wednesday's ceremony in the borough started with a march down Bellevue Avenue by members of Langhorne's Jesse Soby American Legion Post 148 dressed in Revolutionary War uniforms and carrying muskets from that era fixed with bayonets.

As Middletown resident George Woolley played music from his bagpipe, residents and officials entered the burial site and listened to the various speeches honoring veterans. Post Commander Don Mather read the names of deceased veterans from Langhorne and the surrounding area.

Post members fired a three-shot salute from their muskets, and Middletown resident Tom Hutchinson closed the event by playing "Taps" on his bugle.

Chris English can be reached at 215-949-4193 or cenglish@phillyBurbs.com.

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