Monument City » American Revolution

George Washington Monument in Mount Vernon (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Sun, 31 May 2009 17:41:56 +0000

Location

Mount Vernon Place & Washington Place (Street View)

GPS: 39° 17′ 50.80″ N 76° 36′ 56.40″ W

History

Begun in 1815, Baltimore’s Washington Monument was the first monument planned to our nation’s first president. However, it was not the first completed. The stonework monument in Washington County, MD at Washington Monument State Park was finished in 1827, two years before Baltimore’s elegant spire – which is modeled after the Place Vendôme Column (in turn modeled after Trajan’s Column). The cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1815 and the statue by artist Enrico Causici was dedicated November 11, 1829. Legend holds that a prodigy or omen was observed upon the raising of the statue to the top of the 178 foot doric column, “…a shooting star dashed across the sky and an eagle lit on the head of the settling general.” The Baltimore monument was designed by architect Robert Mills, who also designed the Washington Monument in Washington, DC. The original statue design featured Washington dressed in Roman military garb riding a chariot. As project finances tightened, the statue theme was modified to that of Washington resigning his commission as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army in Annapolis. The original site for this massive monument was down by the old Court House, on Calvert between Lexington and Fayette, by the Battle Monument. Area residents, however, feared that the monument would either topple on their homes or attract lightning. Colonel John Eager Howard, who served under Washington, donated a portion of his estate, Howard’s Woods, to the project. The hill upon which this monument stands was, at the time, well north of the city proper. $100,000 was raised by lottery for the monument’s construction through the authorized sale of 35,000 tickets. The monument actually ended up costing $200,000. The statue and monument are made of marble from Cockeysville, just north of the city.

Notes

Over the coming decades after the monument’s completion, the parks running north and south (in the shape of a Greek cross) became filled with other outdoor sculptures, including monuments to Taney, Lafayette, John Eager Howard, Severn Teackle Wallis and George Peabody, along with the Sea Urchin statue, several ornate fountains, a proud regal lion by Barye, Military Courage, and four corner pieces around the great circle of the Washington Monument depicting allegorically the figures of War, Peace, Force and Order. Freedom & Equality were also constructed for this area, but were broken and discarded in the casting process. As the Washington Monument project wore on, the original design for the column was simplified – some of the details of which were later re-invested into the ornate fencing surrounding the base of the column. During the warmer months, visitors to the Washington Monument can enter through the base (which contains a small museum) and pay a dollar to climb 228 stairs all the way to the top, which affords an excellent vantage point of the city.

Nearby

Links

George Washington on Wikipedia
History of the Washington Monument and Mount Vernon and Washington Places
On Flickr & Panoramio
List of monuments dedicated to George Washington
Baltimore’s Washington Monument on Wikipedia
Entry on the Smithsonian outdoor sculpture index

John Eager Howard Equestrian Monument (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Sat, 30 May 2009 02:07:57 +0000

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Location

Madison Street & Washington Place / N Charles Street (Street View)

GPS: 39° 17′ 54.32″ N 76° 36′ 56.75″ W

History

Dedicated on January 16, 1904, this lively equestrian statue of Maryland’s own John Eager Howard was executed by artist Emmanuel Fremiet. It was a gift of the Municipal Art Society of Baltimore City and stands on land once part of Howard’s estate. Fremiet, a renowned animal sculptore of the time, is also well known for his equestrian statue of Joan of Arc in the Place des Pyramides of Paris. Howard served under General George Washington as a colonel in the Continental Army, hence his placement just north of Washington’s spire in the historic Mount Vernon neighborhood. Howard distinguished himself militarily at the Battle of Cowpens, where he lead a bayonet charge that turned the tide of battle. That act of valor is commemorated at another monument to Eager nearby on Centre Street. Howard County, Maryland, is named after him, as are Howard & Eager Streets in Baltimore City. Howard sat as a member of the Continental Congress in 1788, served as governor of Maryland for three consecutive one-year terms, was state senator, United States congressman and United States senator and lost the vice-presidential election in 1816.

Notes

On the back of the monument is a replica of the medal granted Howard by Congress for valor at the Battle of Cowpens, along with a panel showing a Continental officer riding down a British soldier.

Nearby

Links

John Eager Howard Bayonet Monument (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Thu, 28 May 2009 19:55:50 +0000

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Location

W Centre Street & N Howard Street (Street View)

GPS: 39° 17′ 47.46″ N 76° 37′ 13.49″ W

History

Just west of the Centre Street light rail stop on Howard Street, which was named after him, this 1985 monument is by artist David Gerlach and is one of two monuments to the Revolutionary War hero and statesman John Eager Howard. The other more classical equestrian monument to Howard lies at the north end of the park above the Washington Monument in Mount Vernon. Howard became recognized for his gallantry at the Battle of Cowpens on January 17, 1781 with a bayonet charge which helped secure the American victory. The sculpture was installed as part of the Market Center Redevelopment.

Notes

The park this memorial sits in was once part of Howard’s expansive 260-acre Baltimore estate, which he split up and gifted to various civic causes, religious groups, Lexington Market and even the land for the Mount Vernon Washington Monument. The monument consists of three stylized figures, two of whom are pointing rifles which once had bayonets affixed to them. The figure of Howard points off to the distance, as if ordering the men to charge. At one time his pointing hand held something, presumably a sword or pistol by the way the hand is sculpted. In addition to the missing elements, the figures are also scrawled with graffiti. Howard is buried in Old St. Paul’s Cemetery, which is not far away.

Nearby

Links

George Washington Statue at Druid Hill Park (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Thu, 28 May 2009 18:53:43 +0000

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Location

Hanlon Drive & Mansion House Drive (Street View)

GPS: 39° 19′ 3.00″ N 76° 38′ 33.60″ W

History

This statue was constructed in 1857 in Rome by the American artist Edward Sheffield Bartholomew at the behest of Noah Walker, a Baltimore businessman. Walker had the statue installed in a niche within the facade of his West Baltimore Street clothing business, at what came to be known as the Washington Building. The statue was originally installed on the second floor and was lit at night by a circle of gaslights. An 1871 sketch of its original appearance can be found here. When Walker died the statue was donated by his family to the city and was moved to Druid Hill Park. A new niche for it needed to be constructed as the statue had no back. Enoch Pratt, the philanthropist after whom Baltimore’s library system is named, donated the pedestal upon which it now stands.

Notes

Bartholomew’s Washington statue is one of many monuments dedicated to America’s first president. Aside from the Washington Monument in Mount Vernon, there is also a Washington Bicentennial marker near the Basilica. And compatriots of Washington’s like Lafayette and Pulaski are also memorialized in Baltimore City.

Nearby

Links

On Flickr & Panoramio
Images of Baltimore Parks & Squares from the Maryland Historical Society
Smithsonian sculpture entry
Ghosts of Druid Hill Park

Marquis de Lafayette Monument (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:30:17 +0000

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Location

Washington Place & Mt Vernon Place (Street View)

GPS: 39° 17′ 49.86″ N 76° 36′ 56.48″ W

History

Lafayette was a wildly-popular French military hero of the American Revolution whose full name most Americans have probably never heard: Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de la Fayette. Lafayette served in the Continental Army under General George Washington, hence the proximity of his monument (just south) to Washington’s memorial in the heart of the beautiful neighborhood of Mount Vernon. Lafayette’s involvement in the American Revolution, though it went against the orders of the King of France, was instrumental in solidifying bonds of friendship and military alliance between the fledgling United States and France, along with such diplomatic contemporaries as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson. After rising through the ranks of both the American and French armies, Lafayette ultimately returned to France as a special advisor to the king in 1788, and presented in council session a draft of a document fundamental to the French Revolution, The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. But as the French Revolution mounted in intensity, Lafayette as commander of the French National Guard worked to maintain order, for which he was persecuted and eventually imprisoned by the more radical elements of the Revolution. In 1824-25, President James Monroe invited Lafayette to tour the United States. Lafayette was given a hero’s welcome wherever he went. He visited all twenty-four states and traveled some 6,000 miles. Huge crowds gathered to salute the man, towns were named after him, memorials were erected in his honor and he was even granted honorary United States citizenship by a direct act of Congress – one of only six individuals to have been given this civic honor (an honor which was rededicated to him again in 2002). One hundred years later on September 6, 1924, Baltimore dedicated its own monument to this great general, with sculpture by Andrew O’Connor and landscape architecture by Thomas Hastings. Lafayette was buried in France under American soil from Bunker Hill.

Notes

Baltimore’s Washington Monument looms atop a spire directly north of Lafayette, who sits upon his horse facing south down the hill towards the Inner Harbor. Washington’s huge arm is outstretched, so that it seems almost like he’s commanding Lafayette to ride off into the distance. Apparently the Oneida tribe, whom Lafayette recruited to the American cause, referred to him as Kayewla (“fearsome horseman”). Lafayette’s monument sits directly between the Peabody Conservatory, part of Johns Hopkins University, and the Walters Art Gallery, which houses a fabulous collection of cultural and artistic treasures from around the world and is open to the public for free.

Nearby

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General Pulaski Monument (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 16:51:17 +0000

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Location

S Linwood Avenue & Eastern Avenue (Street View)

GPS: 39° 17′ 13.47″ N 76° 34′ 36.93″ W

History

After years of fighting Russian occupiers in defense of Poland, Kazimierz Pulaski was eventually forced from his homeland. His role in forming the Bar Association, the group responsible for Poland’s first uprising, had cost him is freedom. Sentenced to death, he fled to France where he was recruited by General La Fayette to fight in the American Revolution.

Known as the “father of the American cavalry” for his courageous and intuitive techniques, the soldier of fortune was a friend of Ben Franklin. In 1777, at the Battle of Brandywine, he saved George Washington’s life and was promoted to brigadier general. Due to his inability to speak English he relinquished this post and became America’s “Commander of the Horse,” a position he held until his untimely death. The magnificent relief sculpture depicts General Pulaski and Captain Paul Bentalou leading their cavalry at the Siege of Savannah. Behind the two men are more soldiers and horses in full battle march. Pulaski was shot in the thigh during the fight and died two days later.

Notes

Placed at the southeast corner of Patterson Park, the Pulaski Monument is an imposing combination of art and architecture. The area surrounding the structure is circled by a fence and a long walkway leads to the memorial. Commissioned in 1929, by the General Pulaski Monument Committee, the memorial faced a series of set-backs before it’s final completion in 1951. After collecting and saving funds, primarily from the Polish community, the project stalled when the bank, where the money was kept, went under during the Great Depression. Then, during WWII, bronze became difficult to obtain and inflation increased the cost beyond the estimated amount. It wasn’t until the State of Maryland and the City of Baltimore stepped in to provide additional financial support that the sculpture was completed. Restoration of the monument took place in 2002. Hans Schuler created the relief with A C Radziszewski acting as architect.

Nearby

Links

Maryland Line Monument (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 03:50:25 +0000

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Location

Cathedral Street & W Mount Royal Avenue (Street View)

GPS: 39° 18′ 20.35″ N 76° 37′ 7.58″ W

History

Sculpted by Albert L. Van den Berghen (variously attributed as, Vander Bergen), this monument was dedicated October 19, 1901, to the “Bayonets of the Continental Army.” The name of this memorial references the state’s nickname of “The Old Line State.” The columnar monument was sponsored by the Maryland chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution and the figure depicted high atop the column is the Goddess of Liberty, who holds unfurled the Declaration of Independence in one hand and a laurel wreath in the other. The state motto of Maryland, actually an Italian phrase and not Latin, adorns one of the four decorative plaques at the base of this monument, Fatti maschii, parole femine, the official state-sanctioned translation of which is “Strong Deeds, Gentle Words.”

Notes

Located across the street from the Lyric Opera House, home of the now-defunct Baltimore Opera Company, this monument is the site of much skate-boarding during the warmer months. A good deal of graffiti can be observed around the base of the monument. Across the street and down the hill on the other side is the Maryland Institute College of Art’s “Station Building“, or Mount Royal Station, a former B&O passenger train station erected in 1896 and renovated to academic use in 1966.”

Nearby

Links

On Panoramio & Flickr
At the Smithsonian

Major General Samuel Smith Monument (Baltimore, MD)

admin — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 03:14:48 +0000

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Location

Up the hill from Key Highway and Covington Street (Street View)

GPS: 39° 16′ 49.00″ N 76° 36′ 30.20″ W

History

Samuel Smith (1752-1839) served as major general of the Maryland militias in the War of 1812 and commanded the city’s defenses in the Battle of Baltimore. Smith served two terms as Mayor of Baltimore from 1835 to 1838 and served in Congress for forty years. This monument was dedicated on July 4, 1918 and is another piece by sculptor Hans Schuler. From 1918 to 1953, this monument was located in Wyman Park at Charles Street and 29th Street. It was moved in 1953 to Pratt Street and Light Street (Sam Smith Park) and moved again in 1970 to its current location.

Notes

Situated in the park next to the Armistead Monument on Federal Hill, this spot offers an excellent view of the Inner Harbor and Downtown.

Nearby

Links

Samuel Smith monument entry on the Smithsonian outdoor sculpture index
Samuel Smith gravesite at Westminster Burial Ground in Baltimore
Smith on Wikipedia
On Panoramio & Flickr