The Civil War Memorial, in the

DeKalb County DeKalb County may refer to one of several counties in the United States, all of which were named for Baron Johan DeKalb: * DeKalb County, Alabama * DeKalb County, Georgia * DeKalb County, Illinois * DeKalb County, Indiana * DeKalb County, Missour ...

county seat of

Sycamore Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the ancient Greek ' (''sūkomoros'') meaning "fig-mulberry". Species of trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplata ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, United States, is located in front of the DeKalb County Courthouse on a public square. The memorial was erected in 1896 and dedicated in 1897. The structure is a memorial to the thousands of DeKalb County residents who served in the American Civil War. It incorporates an

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by Anc ...

which rises to 50 feet (15.2 m) in height. The base is adorned with copper sculpture, completed by an unknown sculptor. On the east facade of the memorial the word "Antietam", denoting the

Battle of Antietam The Battle of Antietam (), or Battle of Sharpsburg particularly in the Southern United States, was a battle of the American Civil War fought on September 17, 1862, between Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union G ...

, is misspelled. This work of

public art Public art is art in any Media (arts), media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and phy ...

underwent its first restoration work in 2005-2006. The memorial is included among the 187 buildings and structures considered

contributing properties In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distri ...

to the Sycamore Historic District. The

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

was added to the U.S.

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1978. The structure also has artistic significance as it is listed by the Smithsonian American Art Museum in their research database. It is one of the few

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

s in DeKalb County found within that database. The Civil War Memorial is owned by DeKalb County.

History

The DeKalb County Civil War Memorial and the sculpture that adorns it was created by an unknown sculptor and installed in front of the DeKalb County Courthouse in 1896.Civil War Memorial
" Property Information Report, Sycamore Historic District, HAARGIS Database, ''Illinois Historic Preservation Agency''. Retrieved July 8, 2007.Civil War Memorial
Art Inventories Catalog (IAS IL000424), Smithsonian Institution Research Information System, ''Smithsonian American Art Museum''. Retrieved July 8, 2007. The county-owned memorial stands on the public square in Sycamore, the county seat and is 50 feet (15.2 m) tall. The structure was dedicated on June 24, 1897 as a memorial to the 2,388 people from DeKalb County who served in the military during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

.Ritzman, Floyd
Image of dedication ceremony
(1897), Abraham Lincoln Historical Digitization Project, Northern Illinois University Libraries. Retrieved February 28, 2007.Hernandez, Aracely
Civil War monuments are getting a facelift
''Daily Chronicle'', July 23, 2005. Retrieved February 28, 2007. In July 2005 the statues adorning the monument underwent a

restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

. DeKalb County appropriated

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

15,000 for the project which, among other tasks, repaired a split seam in one of the soldier statues and a crack in the other sculpture's base. The project took approximately six months; the statues were removed for the duration of the restoration work and reinstalled in March 2006. During the restoration it was revealed that the statues, thought to be

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

, were actually

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

.Herra, Dana
Civil War statues reinstalled after overdue cleaning
''Daily Chronicle'', March 2, 2006. Retrieved February 28, 2007. The work, the first in the 110-year history of the memorial, was completed at a cost of $16,500. Three months after the work was completed one of the statues was removed for a second time because the metal began to

oxidize Redox (reduction–oxidation, , ) is a type of chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of substrate change. Oxidation is the loss of electrons or an increase in the oxidation state, while reduction is the gain of electrons or a d ...

.Herra, Dana
Green soldier gets second scrubbing
''Daily Chronicle'', June 8, 2006. Retrieved February 28, 2007.

Design

The 50-foot (15.2-m) tall memorial has base dimensions of 10 feet (3 m) by 6 feet (1.8 m). The monument is constructed from a combination of marble, masonry, and the metal used for the sculpted copper and masonry soldiers. The structure also incorporated wood into its design. The

rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...

s the figures on the base hold and the bases that they stand on are made of wood. The front facade is adorned with a marble plate engraved with an excerpt from U.S. President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

Gettysburg Address The Gettysburg Address is a Public speaking, speech that President of the United States, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered during the American Civil War at the dedication of the Gettysburg National Cemetery, Soldiers' National Cemetery, ...

. Each of the other facades, also marble faced, are emblazoned with the names of major battles and campaigns of the war. The word "Antietam," representing the

, is misspelled on the east,

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

facade of the memorial as "Anteitam."Road Rally drove into Sycamore's past
'

Daily Chronicle The 'Daily Chronicle' was a British newspaper that was published from 1872 to 1930 when it merged with the '' Daily News'' to become the ''News Chronicle''. Foundation The ''Daily Chronicle'' was developed by Edward Lloyd out of a local newspap ...

', July 26, 2006. Retrieved February 17, 2007. The two

statues, each standing 6 feet (1.8 m) tall, flank the

which rises to a masonry soldier statue, instead of the typical

apex The apex is the highest point of something. The word may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional entities * Apex (comics), a teenaged super villainess in the Marvel Universe * Ape-X, a super-intelligent ape in the Squadron Supreme universe *Apex ...

of an obelisk. The figure atop the

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

obelisk is a mustached American Civil War soldier dressed in a long coat, a cape, and a cap. In the figure's right hand he holds the handle of his sword and the sword's tip rests in front of his right foot. In the soldier's left hand is a flag. Below the apex of the obelisk, on the memorial's base, are two additional sculpted figures, a

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

infantry soldier and a

cavalry soldier. The Union infantryman is dressed in a cap, long coat, and a cape, much like the figure atop the obelisk. The Union cavalryman, standing on the east side of the base, is dressed in a brimmed hat and short jacket.

Significance

The 1974 Illinois Historic Sites Survey Inventory found the DeKalb County Civil War Memorial significant in the areas of

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

and

. At the time of the 1974 survey, the memorial was considered in "excellent" and "not altered" condition.Civil War Memorial
, (

PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...

), Illinois Historic Sites Survey Inventory Form, 1974, HAARGIS Database, ''Illinois Historic Preservation Agency''. Retrieved July 8, 2007. It is also one of the few sculptures in

that is listed in the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...

's Smithsonian Institution Research Information System (SIRIS).Smithsonian Institution Research Information System
Art Inventories Catalog, ''Smithsonian American Art Museum''. Retrieved July 8, 2007. The Civil War Memorial is listed as a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distri ...

to the Sycamore Historic District.Sycamore Historic District
" National Register District Report, HAARGIS Database, ''Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.'' Retrieved July 8, 2007. The

joined the U.S.

on May 2, 1978. As a part of the Sycamore Historic District, the National Register classifies the DeKalb County Civil War Memorial as an "

object Object may refer to: General meanings * Object (philosophy), a thing, being, or concept ** Object (abstract), an object which does not exist at any particular time or place ** Physical object, an identifiable collection of matter * Goal, an ...

References

{{good article 1896 establishments in Illinois 1896 sculptures Buildings and structures completed in 1896 Buildings and structures in Sycamore Historic District Copper sculptures in the United States Historic district contributing properties in Illinois Marble sculptures in Illinois Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Outdoor sculptures in Illinois Sculptures of men in Illinois Statues in Illinois Union (American Civil War) monuments and memorials in Illinois

History

Design

Significance

See also

References