Diamond Jubilee: The Mall, Indianapolis
- Matthew P G
- 17 minutes ago
- 7 min read
AQ and I arrived in Indianapolis and stayed at a cheap hotel, near the racetrack, out of the city center. We had taken the day to travel there, so we woke up the following morning to explore. As fate would have it - it was July 4th. That meant some things were closed, but traffic was nil and parking downtown (that morning) was a breeze.
Neither of us knew much about the city, so we parked near Monument Circle, the symbolic heart of "Indy".
Recognized as one of the world's outstanding monuments, the structure has come to symbolize both the City of Indianapolis and the state of Indiana. The Soldiers & Sailors Monument is Indiana's official memorial to the Hoosiers that served in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Civil War, the Frontier Wars and the Spanish-American War. The Limestone used for the monument is gray oolitic limestone from the Romona quarries of Owen County. It stands 284 feet, 6 inches high, only 15 feet shorter than the Statue of Liberty. It cost $598,318 in 1902. The commission for the monument construction requested architects to submit design proposals. Of the seventy proposals turned in, two finalists were chosen. From those two, Bruno Schmitz of Berlin, Germany, received the appointment. There are a number of art works either built into the Monument, or placed throughout the grounds. Bruno Schmitz brought with him Rudolf Schwarz. Schwarz was sculptor for the statuary groups "War" and "Peace", "The Dying Soldier", "The Homefront" and the four statues at the corners of the Monument that represents the Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, and Navy. The Monument is crowned with a statue of Victory, holding a sword in her right hand and a torch in her left.
We were the only visitors that morning in a normally busy part of the city. The monument is impressive for its detail and statuary. AQ loved it and I was in shock that no one I knew ever talked about it. The old adage "they don't build 'em like this any more" spoke loudly to me. Indianapolis wanted to make a statement - it was successful
More interesting places to visit were located north of the monument according to the map, so we walked up Meridian Street. The first building we came upon was the massive Federal Court Building. Again, the size alone impressed. It felt like a piece of Federal Triangle, DC, had been transported to the Midwest.
The court building, however, only serves as an anchor to the southern end of a mall that stretches through the center of the city. Just north of it is the beautiful University Park and gorgeous Depew Fountain.
Located between Vermont Street and New York Street, University Park was set aside in 1821 to be the site of the state university. This plan never developed, and over the years, it served a variety of other uses; housing a seminary, churches, and the city's first high school. Union troops used the land for drilling practices during the Civil War. In 1866 local residents began a fundraising effort to develop the land into a city park. Ten years later their dream became a reality. The park is beautifully landscaped with trees, flower beds and decorated with statues. In the center of the park is the Depew Fountain. There are five levels to the fountain. The different tiers are decorated with bronze fish, children playing, frogs and a woman draped in a toga. A sculpture of President Benjamin Harrison (Indiana's only president) stands on the south center edge of the park with statues of Abraham Lincoln at the southeast corner and Schuyler Colfax (Vice President under Grant) in the east center portion of the park. Additional statuary includes Syrinx, the wood nymph on the east side of the fountain listening to the music that Pan, the satyr, is playing on the west side of the fountain.
The strangely-named park makes sense after looking into it. With foresight, the city had set aside land for a state university except... it was never built there. Rather than lose that open space, the citizens rallied and were successful in declaring it a park. The park and fountain make for a dramatic "lawn" fronting the Indiana War Memorial over which it towers.
The Indiana War Memorial is the focal point of the area. I had never heard of it. If I thought the Soldiers & Sailors Monument was impressive, then the War Memorial just blew me away totally. The building looked like it should be in a European capital city, not "Indianapolis".
The origins of the Indiana World War Memorial Plaza lay in a 1919 attempt by the city of Indianapolis to lure the newly formed American Legion from its temporary headquarters in New York City. The American Legion, chartered by Congress following World War I, is an organization of veterans that sponsors youth programs, promotes patriotism and national security and provides a commitment to Americans who have served in the armed forces. At an American Legion national convention in Minneapolis in November 1919, cities sent representatives to lobby to become the new headquarters. Indianapolis drew support because of its central location within the United States and the city's shows of patriotism. Although Washington, D.C. received the most votes on the first ballot, Indianapolis gained a majority and won the second with 361 votes of 684 cast. The city and state then had to provide a location, and one of the promises the city made was to erect a fitting memorial to those who served in World War I. Thus, in January 1920 a public library, St. Clair Park, University Park, and two occupied city blocks were designated as the site for the plaza, with one new building for the American Legion to use as their national headquarters, various public buildings, and a war memorial. The Indiana War Memorial Bill was passed in July 1920 and appropriated $2 million for construction and land. The city and state reached an agreement whereby the city would pay for the site and maintenance costs, while the State of Indiana would pay for the memorial's construction.[9] The Plaza was dedicated by the Legion in November 1921 with the laying of a cornerstone from the bridge over the River Marne at Château-Thierry.
(Wikipedia)
The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, one of the Ancient Wonders of the World, was the inspiration - no wonder it appeared so striking. Not only that, Indy was successful in getting the American Legion to establish itself there rather than Washington, DC - no small feat!
As if Indy just could not stop with impressive sites, just north of the massive War Memorial is the graceful Obelisk Square.
Veteran’s Memorial Plaza, once known as Obelisk Square, is located immediately north of the Indiana War Memorial. The Obelisk and Fountain rise from the center of the plaza, while flagpoles bearing the flags of each of the 50 United States stand on the east and west sides. Completed in 1930, the park was originally a broad concrete square, but was converted into a landscaped park with trees in 1976 as part of the celebration of America’s Bicentennial. In 2004, the park was again reconfigured to return the ‘line of sight’ aspect of the original architects’ plan. Large ordinance pieces, including tanks and eight World War I German cannons, originally sat at the outside corners of the plaza. During World War II, six of the cannons were melted down for scrap metal. The remaining cannons were moved to new locations when the plaza was converted into a park in the mid-1970s. Centrally located in the plaza are the Obelisk and Fountain. The Obelisk is a 100-foot shaft of black Berwick granite, ornamented at its base with four bronze bas-relief tablets, each four by eight feet. The Obelisk represents “the hopes and aspirations of the nation, a symbol of the power of nature to reproduce and continue the life of the country.” The tablets represent the four fundamentals on which the nation’s hopes are founded Law, Science, Religion, and Education. They were set into place in the fall of 1929 under the supervision of Henry Hering, the primary sculptor of the plaza. The pinnacle of the Obelisk is covered with gold leaf. The fountain is 100 feet in diameter and made from pink Georgia marble and terrazzo. Henry Hering (1874-1949) was a New York-based architectural sculptor well known for his allegorical figures in traditional Beaux Arts and Art Deco style. His work can be found in most major U.S. cities.
Indy had memorial art styles ranging from Ancient Egyptian to Art Deco. I was so amazed. AQ was shocked I didn't know anything about it. Why did I not know more about my own country?
If everything we had seen was not enough, just north of the obelisk lies the American Legion Mall.
The American Legion Mall (ALM) extends from St. Clair Street to North Street between Meridian and Pennsylvania Streets. On the east side is the American Legion National headquarters, and on the west side is the headquarters of the American Legion's Department of Indiana. Looking to the south from St. Clair Street, the visitor sees the solemn grounds of the Cenotaph in the foreground. The Cenotaph memorializes the nation's first casualty of World War I, Corporal James B. Gresham of Company F, 16th Infantry and Evansville Indiana. In the background rise the World War II, Korean, and Vietnam memorials on the flanks with Veteran's Plaza and the World War Memorial anchoring the vista at its southern end.
At the north end of the mall, perhaps the US' most crowded urban space with war memorials (rivalling DC), is the city's library - framed perfectly by the monument at the center of the American Legion Mall.
Unlike other libraries we had seen on the trip, the Indianapolis Central Library was funded and founded by the state. Andrew Carnegie contributed generously to the system, but the signature building is not a "Carnegie Libary".
Located in downtown Indianapolis, the Central Library building was designed by architect Paul Philippe Cret (with Zantzinger, Borie and Medary). The library opened in 1917 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
(Wikipedia)
I loved the buffalo and book sculpture at the entrance.
July 2021
AQ and I had been greatly impressed by Indianapolis' amazing central mall and all its memorials. The importance that the city (and state) put on symbolism might be unparalleled outside of Washington, DC. What exists there might be seen in the capital city of a country - not a city "in the middle" of the US. Indy truly held some great surprises for us.
I also loved that the northern end was anchored by a library, a collection of books and knowledge. Perhaps the library serves as a reminder that all those memorials would have been unnecessary if people actually learned from history and did not continually repeat it. The library represents that hope. Ironically, the southern end is bordered by a neo-classical court building representing "justice" - perhaps the reason wars were started in the first place - people sought "justice" for some wrong.
Indianapolis - wow!
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