![Soldiers' and Sailers' Monument Manhattan full site at dusk](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/Soldiers%27_and_Sailers%27_Monument_Manhattan_full_site_at_dusk.jpg)
The Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Monument is a monument located at
89th Street
89th Street is a one-way street running westbound from the East River to Riverside Drive, overlooking the Hudson River, in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The street is interrupted by Central Park. It runs through the Upper West Side, ...
and
Riverside Drive in
Riverside Park in the
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...
of
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
,
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. It commemorates
Union Army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
soldiers and sailors who served in 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 ...
. It is an enlarged version of the
Choragic Monument of Lysicrates
The Choragic Monument of Lysicrates near the Acropolis of Athens was erected by the ''choregos'' Lysicrates, a wealthy patron of musical performances in the Theater of Dionysus, to commemorate the prize in the dithyramb contest of the City Diony ...
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 ...
, and was designed by the firm of
Stoughton & Stoughton with Paul E. M. DuBoy. The monument was completed in 1902.
History
Early history
The monument was first suggested in 1869.
However, little was done to create the monument until 1893 – at a time the memory of the war was fading and there was a wave of nostalgia for the Civil War in the country
– when the New York State legislature established a Board of Commissioners for a monument to the soldiers and sailors who had served in the
Union Army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
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 ...
.
Originally set to be built at Fifty-ninth Street and Fifth Avenue then at Mount Tom (83rd Street and Riverside Drive) the project was delayed for many years because many organizations in the city could not agree on a site for the monument. When the final site was selected, the winning design for the monument had to be redesigned for the new site.
Ground was broken for the monument on September 21, 1900. City Council President
Randolph Guggenheimer turned the first spadeful of dirt. About 200 people were present at the ground breaking ceremony. The first stone was laid in January 1901. On the cornerstone was a simple inscription saying that the monument was erected by the citizens of New York.
It was finally dedicated on
Memorial Day
Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...
in 1902 with President
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
officiating. During the dedication, the monument was unveiled following a parade of Civil War veterans up Riverside Drive. The memorial bears the simple inscription: "To the memory of the brave soldiers and sailors who saved the Union". The monument cost $300,000 to erect.
Granite quarried from the Lacasse Quarry located at
Derby, Orleans County, Vermont, was used in the construction.
The white marble monument was designed after a public competition won by architects
Charles and Arthur Stoughton. Their design was known as the "Temple of Fame".
The ornamental features were carved by Paul E. M. Duboy (1857–1907), who also was the architect of
The Ansonia
The Ansonia is a building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, located at 2109 Broadway, between 73rd and 74th Streets. It was originally built as a residential hotel by William Earle Dodge Stokes, the Phelps-Dodge copper heir ...
, an apartment building also on the Upper West Side. Inspired by Greek antiquity, the monument is based on the
Choragic Monument of Lysicrates
The Choragic Monument of Lysicrates near the Acropolis of Athens was erected by the ''choregos'' Lysicrates, a wealthy patron of musical performances in the Theater of Dionysus, to commemorate the prize in the dithyramb contest of the City Diony ...
in Athens.
The monument takes the form of a
peripteral
A peripteros (a peripteral building, grc-gre, περίπτερος) is a type of ancient Greek or Roman temple surrounded by a portico with columns. It is surrounded by a colonnade ('' pteron'') on all four sides of the ''cella'' (''naos''), crea ...
Corinthian temple raised on a high base, with a tall cylindrical
rusticated cella
A cella (from Latin for small chamber) or naos (from the Ancient Greek, Greek ναός, "temple") is the inner chamber of an ancient Greek temple, Greek or Roman temple in classical antiquity. Its enclosure within walls has given rise to extende ...
, that carries a low conical roof like a lid, ringed by twelve
Corinthian columns
The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order w ...
.
Plinths at the entrance to the raised terrace are incised with the names of the
New York volunteer regiments and the battles in which they served, as well as Union generals.
Repairs and reconstruction
By 1907, there were already reports by Mayor
George B. McClellan Jr.
George Brinton McClellan Jr. (November 23, 1865November 30, 1940), was an American statesman, author, historian, and educator. The son of the American Civil War general and presidential candidate George B. McClellan, he was the 93rd Mayor of Ne ...
, that the Monument was in need of repair. At that time there were marble slabs in danger of falling from their place; three had already fallen. The building badly leaked, cement was constantly falling from the walls and ceiling, and stone was chipped in many places. He requested $20,000 for the repair of the monument.
A large adjustment to the monument took place in the 1930s, when the plaza's yellow brick, which nicely contrasted with the white marble trim, was replaced with the orange-colored stone common to Parks Department projects of the period. However, these have since chipped and are splitting. The memorial was also given a complete coating of protective paraffin, used at that time to preserve the memorial. In 1962, the City spent over $1 million in extensive repairs to the monument, including a new roof, which had deteriorated, and portions of the monument were replaced with more durable granite.
The monument last received substantive maintenance and repairs in 1962, and has slowly deteriorated since.
The Parks Department had proposed a $1.2 million restoration in 2002. The effort was to restore the monument's steps and sidewalks. It does not appear this was ever completed, because the effort failed when a private donor pulled out. In July 2005, the ''New York Times'' reported "up close the dilapidation is clearly visible. Pave-stones, many damaged by skateboarding and soccer playing, need replacing. The paint covering the many splotches of graffiti is tacky. And the tomblike interior, which is leaking, has long been closed to the public."
In 2007,
Gale Brewer
Gale Arnot Brewer (born September 6, 1951) is an American Democratic politician from the state of New York who has represented the 6th New York City Council District since January 2022, a position she previously held from 2002 to 2013. From Janu ...
, a member of the City Council, committed $650,000 in city money to a redesign of the potholed asphalt plaza south of the monument, with its three Civil War-era cannons. However, that effort bogged down in disagreement on the exact nature of the designs and was never completed. A fence was put up to keep people off the entry stairs because they were in very poor condition in 2008. In March 2014, an attempt to raise $5.5 million was attempted by the
Riverside Park Conservancy following a $1.5 million survey done by the park system. The monument currently has many coatings of anti-graffiti paint. The ornamental bronze doorway has been damaged by vandals. At some point the richly sculptured bronze flagpole base, which featured ship forms, wreaths and other elements, was removed. The park system noted, "the monument is awaiting funding to repair loosened joints, chipped stone, and the damage generally wrought by time if not vandalism."
A study performed in 2017 estimated the cost of fully repairing the monument had grown to $36.5 million, and would continue to become more expensive the longer the city government waits. The structure was further fenced and closed to the public after the 2017 inspection found the structure's retaining wall failing. As of 2021, there still has been no funding allocated for repairs.
Landmark status
The monument was designated a New York City landmark in 1976.
The New York Landmark Commission designated the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument a state landmark in 2001.
Design
The monument was intended to stand at the center of a complex sequence of
balustrade
A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its con ...
d formal paved terraces and stairs that would have rationalized the steep natural slopes to north and west, but were eliminated in the execution.
[The paved plaza that leads to it was renovated in 1937 and again in 2008; three bronze cannon, each weighing 8508 pounds, are inscribed with their weight, the maker's initials (S.C.L. S. McM. & CO) and the date 1865.] Its siting at a curve in Riverside Drive makes it visible from a distance, a desirable feature for a monument in the
City Beautiful
The City Beautiful Movement was a reform philosophy of North American architecture and urban planning that flourished during the 1890s and 1900s with the intent of introducing beautification and monumental grandeur in cities. It was a part of the ...
movement, of which this
Beaux-Arts monument is a prime example. Originally, there was a planned stairway to the river and a battlemented wall to the south but these were never built. It appears that the area south of the plaza was simply paved, or perhaps treated with pebbles.
On the south side of the monument are two mounted cannons. On the west side of the memorial, the back steps to the terraces offer views of the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
.
The monument measures approximately tall and deep.
[Staff (ndg]
"Riverside Park Soldiers and Sailors Monument"
New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, also called the Parks Department or NYC Parks, is the department of the government of New York City responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecolog ...
The initial design called for the monument to be crowned with a statue of Peace "of heroic size" but this was not done.
The sculptured bronze door at the base of the monument, now kept locked, was originally open to visitors. Currently, the interior is open one day annually at
Open House New York
Open House New York (OHNY) is a cultural nonprofit organization that holds annual Doors Open Days. It was founded in 2001 in New York City.
Organization
Open House New York (OHNY) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that hosts educational p ...
. The interior is entirely revetted with the same veined white marble used on the exterior. The interior is in two stages, with six
niches in the lower stage, corresponding to the exterior basement, and an upper stage of tall Corinthian pilasters flanking plain panels; above is a ribbed interior dome with a central lantern. The mosaic on the floor is a star centered on a bronze relief medallion of the US arms, with crossed oak and laurel sprays.
The exterior colonnade carries an entablature adorned with a full frieze containing the inscriptions "To the memory of the Brave Soldiers and Sailors Who Saved the Union," A cresting of eagles alternating with cartouches surmounts the cornice. The monument terminates in a low conical roof crowned by a richly decorated marble finial.
The Riverside Park Conservancy maintains the plantings in the area surrounding the monument.
Use
Parades and celebrations
Many huge Memorial Day celebrations have been centered on this monument. The number of people and interest in the Memorial Day celebrations at this monument has varied greatly and at times has been very significant. On Memorial Day 1907, 16,000 men marched in a GAR Parade. However, in 1910, in a celebration headed by President Taft, only 1,500 showed up. In 1911, 20,000 men and 150 organizations took part in the Memorial Day parade. Then in 1914, 9,000 men were noted in the New York Times article, in a parade from 72nd street to the monument. In 1922, the Memorial Day parade attracted 14,000 participants. The numbers dwindled down and in the 1990s attracted only a few dozen people. After the
September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...
, the numbers grew.
Backdrops
In addition to annual Memorial Day celebrations, the monument has been used in the scenes and as a backdrop of movies such as ''
The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to:
Neil Simon play and its adaptations
* ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon
** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play
*** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...
'', ''
Godspell
''Godspell'' is a musical composed by Stephen Schwartz with book by John-Michael Tebelak. The show is structured as a series of parables, primarily based on the Gospel of Matthew, interspersed with music mostly set to lyrics from traditional hymn ...
'' and ''
Parting Glances
''Parting Glances'' is a 1986 American drama film. The film was one of the earlier motion pictures to deal frankly and realistically with the subject of AIDS and the impact of the relatively new disease on the gay community in the Ronald Reaga ...
'' as well as a backdrop to TV shows ''
Law & Order
''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise.
''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...
'' and ''
Sex and the City
''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City (newspaper column), newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the ...
''. It was also known as a "gay cruising area" in the 60's. In the mid 1980s the West Side Arts Coalition provided midsummer dance programs on the steps of the monument at 89th street. Since 2004, the monument has served as the home of the
Hudson Classical Theater Company
The Hudson Classical Theater Company, formerly known as Hudson Warehouse is known for presenting outdoor theatre, including Shakespeare. They perform three outdoor plays in the summer months in Riverside Park and fall/winter productions at Go ...
.
[ ] They perform classic plays including Shakespeare works and original plays on the back steps of the monument in summer months.
See also
*
*
References
Explanatory notes
Citations
External links
New York Architecture Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument
Michael Minn 89th St Soldiers and Sailors Monument
Riverside Park Fund
{{Authority control
1902 establishments in New York City
Buildings and structures completed in 1902
New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan
Riverside Park (Manhattan)
Union (American Civil War) monuments and memorials in New York (state)
Upper West Side