The savior of public education in Pennsylvania
April 2026
By Ross Hetrick
Of the many achievements of Thaddeus Stevens, the one he looked back on most fondly was his saving of public education in Pennsylvania in 1835.
Education in Pennsylvania in the early 1830s was truly a nightmare. Schooling was pretty much restricted to those that could pay for it. There were provisions that the state would pay if a family could prove that they were paupers. But who wanted to be a pariah in their community? So between the people who thought education was unnecessary and those too proud to accept charity, less than a third of the state's school age children received an education, according to the book Thaddeus Stevens in Gettysburg: The Making of an Abolitionist, by Bradley R. Hoch.
Then on April 1, 1834 Pennsylvania was one of the first states to pass legislation that provide schools for every child regardless of their wealth. Of course, this also meant higher taxes and there was an immediate backlash. Additionally, many churches were wary of secular education. This resulted with many people elected in the fall election pledged to repeal the new law.
On March 19, 1835 the Pennsylvania Senate voted to repeal the public school act and then the bill moved over to the state House of Representatives. Stevens, who represented Gettysburg, got up on April 11 and gave one the most effective speeches in his legislative career.
With both members of the House and Senate listening, Stevens said public education was necessary so that every voter could "direct wisely the Legislatures, the ambassadors, and the Executives of the Nation." It would also benefit the children of parents who saw their offspring as mere "instruments of gain."
"This law will be of vast advantage to the offspring of such misers," Stevens said. "If they are compelled to pay their taxes to support schools, their very meanness will induce them to send their children to them to get the worth of their money."
He also appealed to the other legislators desire for fame. "If you wish to acquire popularity, how often have you been admonished to build not your monuments of brass or marble, but make them of ever-living mind."
The speech was so powerful that it seemingly swayed the House to pass a strong public education act, which was then approved by the Senate that had earlier repealed public education act. It was a great triumph for Stevens and he was accorded the title of "Father of Public Education in Pennsylvania," even though he was actually the savior. He did not originate the 1834 bill.
This led to many schools in Pennsylvania being named after Stevens, including ones in Chambersburg, New Castle, Williamsport, Pittsburg, Philadelphia and Allentown. Even in Washington, D.C. and Brooklyn, NY schools bear his name.
Ironically, there has never been a Gettysburg school named after Stevens even though he represented the area in the state legislature when he made his famous speech. A 2014 request by the Thaddeus Stevens Society to name the Gettysburg Middle School after Stevens was turned down by the board of the Gettysburg Area School District.
Despite his many accomplishments in the following decades, Stevens considered that speech as one of his greatest victories. And close to death in 1868 he said: "I shall feel myself abundantly rewarded for all my efforts in behalf of universal education if a single child, educated by the Commonwealth, shall drop a tear of gratitude on my grave."
Ross Hetrick is president of the Thaddeus Stevens Society, which operates the Thaddeus Stevens Museum at 46 Chambersburg St. in Gettysburg, PA. More information about the Great Commoner can be found at the Society's website: https://www.thaddeusstevenssociety.com/
