''Wendell Willkie plaque'' is a public sculpture at the

Indiana Statehouse The Indiana Statehouse is the state capitol building of the U.S. state of Indiana. It houses the Indiana General Assembly, the office of the Governor of Indiana, the Indiana Supreme Court, and other state officials. The Statehouse is located in ...

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

and was designed by American sculptor and educator

Paul Fjelde Paul Fjelde (August 12, 1892 – May 3, 1984) was a noted American sculptor and educator. Background Paul Fjelde was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was the son of Jacob Fjelde, who was a well-known sculptor in Norway when he emigrated ...

. This

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 ...

plaque Plaque may refer to: Commemorations or awards * Commemorative plaque, a plate or tablet fixed to a wall to mark an event, person, etc. * Memorial Plaque (medallion), issued to next-of-kin of dead British military personnel after World War I * Pla ...

honors

Wendell L. Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 History of the United States Republican Party, Republican nominee for President of the United State ...

(1892–1944) who was the Republican Party nominee for the U.S. presidency in 1940. The plaque was placed in the Statehouse rotunda on February 18th, 1950. The inscription on the bottom of the plaque was taken from Willkie's book "One World" which calls for unified world order.

Description

At the top of the plaque is Willkie's name and the dates of his birth and death, February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944. A silhouetted image of Willkie is facing proper left and is located in the center of the plaque. In this image Willkie is clean shaven and wearing a suit and tie. Inscriptions beneath the image describe Willkie as a "Distinguished citizen of our state and our country", a lawyer and an industrialist, the author of "One World," and the nominee of the Republican party for President of the United States in 1940. Under the description in an eagle and beneath it is an inscription from Willkie's book "One World" that reads: The plaque measures 50.75 inches × 33.25 inches × 1 inch. The artist's signature is located on the front, proper right, bottom of the plaque. It reads, "Paul Fjelde•sc." On May 15, 2006 the Indiana State Museum listed this plaque as in excellent condition.Indiana State Museum. ''Engraving of Wendell Willkie'', ID 99.2006.020.0064. 15 May 2006. Retrieved from Indiana State Museum Mimsy Database 4 December 2010.

Historical information

The ''Wendell Willkie plaque'' was placed in the Indiana Statehouse rotunda on February 18, 1950, which was the 58th anniversary of Willkie's birth. Approximately 500 people were in attendance to witness the dedication of the bronze plaque and to salute Willkie. Members of Willkie's family were also in attendance, including his widow, son, and brother: Mrs. Edith Willkie, Philip Willkie, and H. Frederick Willkie."Plaque Saluting Willkie, Creed Unveiled in Statehouse Rotunda". Indianapolis Star. February 19, 1950. The plaque was placed on the main floor of the Indiana Statehouse rotunda in the southwest pier facing a bronze plaque bearing "The American's Creed"."Tribute in Bronze: Neighbors who fondly remember Wendell Willkie of Elwood honor his memory by placing plaque in Statehouse rotunda". Indianapolis Star Magazine. Indiana Governor Henry F. Schricker accepted the plaque on behalf of the people of Indiana. An Indianapolis youth, Jack Scott, had the honor of pulling the veil from the plaque. During the dedication ceremony a Statehouse employee, William Holmes, fell from a ladder and broke his arm while checking the veil hung over the plaque. Willkie was born and raised in

Elwood, Indiana Elwood is a city in Madison and Tipton counties in the U.S. state of Indiana. The Madison County portion, which includes most of the city, is part of the Anderson, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the small portion in Tipton County is p ...

, where both of his parents were lawyers. He attended Elwood High School and later graduated from

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

. While at the university he became a member the

Beta Theta Pi Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, as of 2022 it consists of 144 active chapters in the Unite ...

fraternity. The idea for the plaque was conceived by Mrs. Ed Toner of

Anderson, Indiana Anderson, named after Chief William Anderson, is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Indiana, United States. It is the principal city of the Anderson, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses Madison County. Anderson is ...

. Her son, William Toner, was a close friend of Willkie and the publisher of the Anderson Herald. Mrs. Toner wanted the plaque to be from the common man of Madison County, whom Willkie loved. But they were not able to operate a fund-raising campaign on their own, so the assistance of the Junior Chamber of Commerce in Elwood, Anderson, and Alexandria was accepted in order to raise the $2,500 needed for the memorial. Donations were collected both large and small, some in the form of pennies and nickels. School children contributed approximately ten percent of the funds raised. The creator of this Wendell Willkie plaque was Paul Fjelde (August 12, 1892 – May 3, 1984) of New York City, born in

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. Fjelde is also the creator of two other Wendell Willkie plaques, one located in the Summit County Courthouse in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County, Ohio, Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 C ...

, and the other in

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 ...

. To create the plaque, Fjelde first carved Willkie's likeness into clay using a picture as a reference. From this clay carving the bronze plaque was cast using the

lost-wax casting Lost-wax casting (also called "investment casting", "precision casting", or ''cire perdue'' which has been adopted into English from the French, ) is the process by which a duplicate metal sculpture (often silver, gold, brass, or bronze) is ...

technique.

Artist

References

External links

Willkie Plaque in New York City by Paul Fjelde

More photos of Wendell Willkie (Fjelde) on FlickrView more photos of this piece and other artwork found at the Indiana Statehouse on Flickr
{{IndianaStateHousePublicArt Monuments and memorials in Indiana Indiana Statehouse Public Art Collection 1950 sculptures Bronze sculptures in Indiana

Description

Historical information

Artist

See also

References

External links