The Protection of the Flag Monument (also known as the "Defense of the Flag Monument") is a historic

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

located in Academy Park at 715 South Main Street in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Bradford County, Pennsylvania Bradford County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, its population was 59,967. Its county seat is Towanda. The county was created on February 21, 1810, from parts o ...

. Designed in the

Classical Revival Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

style by the architectural firm

McKim, Mead & White McKim, Mead & White was an American architectural firm that came to define architectural practice, urbanism, and the ideals of the American Renaissance in fin de siècle New York. The firm's founding partners Charles Follen McKim (1847–1909), Wil ...

, with a sculpture by George Thomas Brewster, it was erected between 1900 and 1902, and has a

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 ...

pedestal topped by a bronze sculpture group. The sculpture depicts an adult soldier and a young drummer boy attired in Revolutionary War clothing and protecting their flag from falling into enemy hands. A commemorative plaque indicates it was dedicated in memory of the soldiers who fought in defense of the flag. ''Note:'' This includes This monument was added to the

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 2001. It is located in the Athens Historic District.

History and architectural features

Located in Academy Park at 715 South Main Street in Athens, Pennsylvania, the Protection of the Flag Monument was completed in 1902. Erected on the front of the lot where it stands, it occupies the center of the site's western half. The front of the monument may be reached from Main Street via a concrete sidewalk while the monument's eastern side may be approached via a brick walkway, which is flanked by two stones affixed with bronze commemorative plaques. Situated between those stones is a state historical marker and a flag pole. ''Note:'' This includes The monument itself, which is situated 50 feet east of the sidewalk, is surrounded by a 26-foot ornamented, raised granite coping square. The monument's polished, Stony Creek granite pedestal, which stands at the center of that square, is composed of a plinth, molded base, die, and a cap, is roughly nine feet tall, and is topped by a roughly eight-foot-tall bronze sculpture of a wounded adult Revolutionary War-era soldier holding a rifle and a young, barefooted drummer boy. It was created by sculptor George T. Brewster. ''Note:'' This includes The monument's sculpture was commissioned in 1900 by Joseph Whipple Stickler and his wife, Charlotte Snell Stickler, and was unveiled in June 1902. ''Note:'' This includes Stickler, a native of New York who became a successful realtor and philanthropist, had wed Charlotte Snell in Hoboken, New Jersey; Snell, who had attended school at the Athens Academy which had previously been located where the monument now stands, was a daughter of Captain John Snell, an Athens resident who "was one of the first white children born in Bradford county about the time of the

Wyoming Massacre The Battle of Wyoming, also known as the Wyoming Massacre, was a military engagement during the American Revolutionary War between Patriot militiamen and a mixed force of Loyalist soldiers and Iroquois raiders. The clash took place in the Wyomi ...

," according to historian Henry Hall.

Inscriptions

The front of the monument, which faces west in the park, is adorned with a bronze

bas relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

of entwined laurel wreaths, below which were placed the words of the statue's dedication: ''Note:'' This includes

"PRO PATRIA ET GLORIA
ERECTED TO THE MEMORY OF OUR SOLDIERS WHO FOUGHT IN DEFENSE OF THE FLAG."

The inscription on the opposite (rear), eastern-facing side of the monument reads: ''Note:'' This includes

"PRESENTED TO THE TOWNSHIP OF ATHENS, BRADFORD COUNTY BY JOSEPH WHIPPLE AND CHARLOTTE SNELL STICKLER OF ORANGE, NEW JERSEY MDCCCC."

Placement of this monument on the National Register of Historic Places

The NRHP nomination application for the Protection of the Flag Monument was formally reviewed by Pennsylvania's Historic Preservation Board at its March 13, 2001 meeting at 9:45 a.m. at the State Museum in Harrisburg. Also considered for NRHP status at this time were the: Normandy Farm, George K. Heller School, and

Upper Roxborough Historic District Upper Roxborough Historic District is a national historic district located in Philadelphia and Whitemarsh Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It encompasses 108 contributing buildings, 23 contributing sites, and 18 contributing structure ...

in Montgomery County;

Awbury Historic District The Awbury Historic District is a historic area in the Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, East Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It encompasses the former summer homes and farms of the extended Cope family, who moved to ...

and Harris/Laird, Schober & Company Building in Philadelphia; Michael Derstine Farmstead in Bucks County; Chester Heights Camp Meeting Historic District in Delaware County;

John Nicholas and Elizabeth Moyer House The John Nicholas and Elizabeth Moyer House, also known as Richland, is a historic home located in Jefferson Township in Berks County, Pennsylvania. Built circa 1817, it is a -story, four-over-four stone dwelling. A stone summer kitchen, which w ...

in Berks County;

William Shelly School and Annex The William Shelly School and Annex, also known as the Eberton School, is a historic school building and annex located in West York, York County, Pennsylvania. Built circa 1897, the Shelly Annex was initially designed as a one-room school, but was ...

in York County; and the

Zeta Psi Fraternity House The Zeta Psi Fraternity House at Lafayette College is a historic house located on the campus of Lafayette College in Easton, Northampton County, Pennsylvania. The house was built by the Tau Chapter of the Zeta Psi fraternity between 1909 and 1 ...

in Northampton County.Protection of the Flag Monument, in
Historical and Museum Commission: National Register Nominations to be Considered by the Historic Preservation Board
" in ''Pennsylvania Bulletin'', Vol. 31, No. 6, February 10, 2001, p. 893. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, retrieved online October 12, 2019. This monument was then officially added to the

later in 2001. It is located in the Athens Historic District.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Military monuments and memorials in the United States Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Neoclassical architecture in Pennsylvania Buildings and structures completed in 1902 Buildings and structures in Bradford County, Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Bradford County, Pennsylvania Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Pennsylvania 1902 sculptures 1902 establishments in Pennsylvania Flags in art Sculptures of children in the United States