A Philadelphia educator and historic-preservation activist is the new director of the planned Stevens and Smith Historic Site in downtown Lancaster.
Gail E. Tomlinson, 54, was hired by the Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County to lead the development of the $20-million facility at South Queen and East Vine streets.
"This project just brings together so many things that are important to my life," Tomlinson said during an interview at the trust.
Tim Smedick, executive director of the trust, said with Tomlinson's help the organization is preparing to launch a fundraising campaign.
Tomlinson has prepared for this job her entire career, some ways pleasant and others not so pleasant.
Educational startA native of Philadelphia's Germantown, Tomlinson has a bachelor's degree in education and a master's degree in special education from Temple University.
In 1983, after nearly a decade teaching in Philadelphia schools, Tomlinson went to work for the Philadelphia Museum of Art as photography coordinator, developing a system to track museum inventory through photography and reproduction.
She literally returned to her roots in 1986 when she became program coordinator for Historic Germantown Preserved Inc. Three years later, she was named executive director of the Fairmount Park Council for Historic Sites.
During the 1990s, she was executive director of the Citizens Committee on Public Education in Philadelphia. It was during this time, Tomlinson said, that she learned of Stevens' legislative support of public education.
The committee folded in 1999.
In 2000, Tomlinson was named director of Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center, owned by the Philadelphia city government.
It was during her seven-year tenure as project director that Tomlinson probably developed a stronger backbone.
She was terminated as director in January 2006, after she led the renovation of the 18th-century water works facility and the construction of the interpretive center.
"It was an unusual project for a government-owned water department," she said, noting sometimes her historic activism and sense of fairness clashed with government bureaucracy.
Tomlinson said an arbitrary fee for groups led her to request a written policy that she said was not well-received by supervisor Ed Grusheski, general manager of public affairs at the water department. She reported him to the city controller.
Soon after, Grusheski gave Tomlinson an unsatisfactory rating in job performance and cut her salary. Then came the firing last year.
Tomlinson has filed a lawsuit in Philadelphia County court claiming a hostile work environment based on sexual discrimination and retaliation. The suit notes a number of violations under the state Human Relations Act and a violation of the state's whistle-blower law. The civil action names as defendants the City of Philadelphia Water Department and Grusheski.
In June, the suit was moved to federal court in Eastern District, Philadelphia, said Sherri Eyer, Tomlinson's lawyer.
Grusheski would not comment last week about Tomlinson's work at Fairmount, noting he is the subject of a sex-discrimination suit levied by her.
Tomlinson, who was a member of a union while employed by the city, said she decided to see the fight through for the benefit of other women.
"All that being said, I wouldn't have given up my experience with the Fairmount project for anything," she said.
'Great addition'
Bill Musante, president of the board of the Historic Preservation Trust, said he did not have any concerns about Tomlinson's involvement in a labor-related suit. "She is a great addition to the trust, and she is exactly what we were looking for."
Tomlinson even comes with her own hard hat and steel-toed boots, said David Foulk, director of development at the trust, noting she understands how to work with modern construction crews at a historic site.
Tomlinson said she is attracted to the Stevens and Smith project because she can identify with the historic figures' weaknesses and strengths. "Stevens was a consummate politician and was not afraid to play hardball," she said. "He believed the people should be held accountable" for the actions of their leaders.
Her new job is about education, preservation and service to the community, said Tomlinson, who took the train from Philadelphia to Lancaster Monday and plans to move here.
The issues of freedom and equality that will be raised at the Stevens and Smith Historic Site need to be heard and addressed by today's youngsters, she said. "They need to make its lessons part of their fiber of being."
The Stevens and Smith Historic Site will encompass several properties:
• Thaddeus Stevens' home and law office as well as the Kleiss Saloon, all at South Queen and East Vine streets.
Stevens was a 19th-century Pennsylvania lawmaker and U.S. congressman. Historians believe the Kleiss Saloon was a stop along the Underground Railroad.
The structures will be connected to the Lancaster County Convention Center, which also is under construction.
• At East Vine and South Christian streets sit two homes owned by Lydia Hamilton Smith, a mulatto woman who was Stevens' assistant and confidant, as well as a businesswoman.
• Across the street is the Swan Hotel, a Colonial-era structure that will be renovated into a tavern with retail space or offices. The commercial rent will benefit the trust.
• The carriage house behind the Swan Hotel will be part of a new educational and interpretive center. Franklin & Marshall College plans to incorporate a study program, and the center would make use of technology to enable students and researchers to link to informational resources around the world.
Judy A. Strausbaugh is a political writer for the Sunday News. She can be reached at 291-8689 or jstrausbaugh@lnpnews.com .
