Wednesday, October 19, 2022

Cleveland Trip #6: 2 Cool Cleveland Statues: History and a Prudish Command

 Today's blog features 2 cool statutes that I saw on my downtown Cleveland city tour. One has special significance to President Lincoln and the other is a beautiful war memorial, that had to be slightly altered for the prudish!

THE FOUNTAIN OF ETERNAL LIFE- also known as the War Memorial Fountain and Peace Arising from the Flames of War, is a statue and fountain in downtown Cleveland, Ohio designed by Cleveland Institute of Art graduate Marshall Fredericks and dedicated on May 30, 1964. The sculpture, which honors Greater Clevelanders who served, died, or were declared missing in military service, is situated on Veterans' Memorial Plaza (formerly Mall A) as part of the Cleveland Mall.

WHAT IS IT? - The centerpiece is a 35-foot (11 m) bronze figure representing man escaping from the flames of war and reaching skyward for eternal peace. The bronze sphere from which the figure rises represents Earth. Four granite carvings, representing the "geographic civilizations of the world", are placed around the sphere. The central figure towered 46 feet (14 m) above the basin.

PRUDISH CHANGES- Because the muscular male sculpture was naked, some prudish people insisted the sculptor put a cloth over his privates... and they did.   


LINCOLN'S STATUE - A statute of President Abraham Lincoln is located on Mall A in downtown Cleveland. Lincoln stayed in the nearby Wendell House (now the Rockefeller building).

Lincoln visited Cleveland only twice: once in life and once in death. His first visit occurred on February 15, 1861, when Lincoln was on his way from Illinois to his inauguration in Washington D.C. The next time was after he was killed and his body was taken there on the way to Illinois. Over 100,000 people came to see his coffin. 

SCHOOL KIDS RAISED MONEY FOR IT  - Cleveland schoolchildren donated pennies and nickels to fund the statue.

The memorial was unveiled with great ceremony on Lincoln's birthday in 1932 and served as the location for Lincoln birthday celebrations for many years afterwards.

(Photo: Downtown display of flowers) 

NEXT: The 1890s Arcade

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Who I am

I'm a simple guy who enjoys the simple things in life, especially our dogs. I volunteer for dog rescues, enjoy exercising, blogging, politics, helping friends and neighbors, participating in ghost investigations, coffee, weather, superheroes, comic books, mystery novels, traveling, 70s and 80s music, classic country music,writing books on ghosts and spirits, cooking simply and keeping in shape. You'll find tidbits of all of these things on this blog and more. EMAIL me at Rgutro@gmail.com - Rob

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