Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument (Cleveland)

The Cuyahoga County Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument is a major Civil War monument in Cleveland, Ohio, honoring the more than 9,000 individuals from Cuyahoga County who served the Union throughout the war.[1] It was dedicated on July 4, 1894 and is located on the southeast quadrant of Public Square in Downtown Cleveland.[2] It was designed by architect and Civil War veteran Levi Scofield, who also created the monument's sculptures.[1] The monument is regularly open to the public free of charge and welcomes thousands of visitors each year.

The Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument on Public Square in Downtown Cleveland.
Lady Liberty atop the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument with the Terminal Tower in the background.
Sailors from the guided-missile submarine USS Ohio (SSGN-726) tour the monument with retired Navy submariner Timothy Leslie during Cleveland Navy Week in 2010.
One of the four sculptural groupings on the monument's exterior.

History and Construction

The monument consists of an elevated base, surmounted by a 125 ft (38.1 m) column capped with a 15 ft (4.5 m) high statue depicting a personification of Liberty. Levi Scofield, the architect and sculptor of the monument, is also known for having designed the Ohio State Reformatory, located in Mansfield, Ohio as well as Cleveland's Schofield Building, the former headquarters of his architectural firm known today as The Kimpton Schofield Hotel.

The larger than life bronzes, viewed in the proper sequence, tell of the war’s deadly progression. The south side features the Navy, as sailors load a giant mortar at 48 hour Battle of Island Number Ten which resulted in a low number of casualties. The bronze features an African American, in one of the first monuments showing blacks and whites fighting side-by-side. Moving counter-clockwise (on purpose. Scofield shows that war is contrary to human nature.) the next bronze is the Artillery. The cannoneers aim and fire, but there are losses – two artillerists have been killed.

On the north side is Infantry, during a battle at Resaca, GA. where Scofield was present. Of the nine figures, three are dead. The rest have been wounded. Finally, to the west, the Cavalry statue shows all the horrors of war in ferocious, hand-to-hand combat – in frightening realism. The only rebel soldier is shot at point blank range, in a very accurate sculptural portrayal of war.

The interior provides peace and tranquility. Bronze panels mark the beginning and end of the war, as well as Lincoln’s freeing of the slaves. Another panel shows the names of 100 women of the Northern Ohio Soldiers and Sailors Relief Society. In the corner of the panel sits a Catholic nun, from the Ursuline order, who still run Cleveland’s St. Vincent Charity Medical Center. [3]

Inside the memorial building are a series of marble tablets listing 9,000 Civil War veterans that served with Cuyahoga County regiments or were from Cuyahoga County.[4] Also inside the base are four bronze relief sculptures depicting the Soldiers' Aid Society, Emancipation of the Slaves, Beginning of the War in Ohio and the End of the War, as well as busts of Col. James Barnett, Scofield, and several Ohio officers who were killed in action during the war.[5]

In 2011, researchers discovered that the names of 140 black soldiers from the area were omitted from the tablets.[6] On June 19th, 2019, after more than a decade of extensive research, 107 members of the United States Colored Troops were officially added to the monument's Roll of Honor with a formal ceremony.[7]

Restoration

Restoration of the monument began October 26, 2008, and was expected to last approximately nine months with a cost $1.5 million. Funds came from federal, state and local governments, veterans' and community groups.[4] Work included cleaning interior and exterior stonework, structural repairs and painting, restoring chandeliers, installing upgraded heating and lighting, repairs to stained glass windows, installing air conditioning and making the monument accessible to disabled visitors. When the marble tablets were created, names were etched with acid, then inked. Over time, the dyes from the ink leached into the marble and discolored it. Workers cleaned each name and restored the marble's original patina.[5] The renovated monument opened June 5, 2010,[8] with $2 million spent on work.[2]

From the time of dedication until the 1940s, plantings around the monument depicted 24 army corps badges and 5 badges of Civil War organizations. After construction work finished, volunteer gardeners used over 16,000 plants to recreate the 5 organization badges plus two based on illustrations in the memorial room and one for the Daughters of Union Veterans. The plants cost $6,500 and were specially cultivated for the project. The 24 army badges could not be recreated because of budget constraints.[9]

See also

References
  1. Cuyahoga County Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument Commission (Cleveland, Ohio) (1896). Brief historical sketch of the Cuyahoga County soldiers' and sailors' monument. Complete description of the memorial structure. Dedication programme. The Library of Congress. Cleveland, O., The Monument commissioners.
  2. Dave Davis (6 April 2011). "Gifts to renovate Soldiers and Sailors Monument sit in bank while county awaits repayment". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland. Retrieved 2011-06-01.
  3. Notarianni, Nancy (July 2011). "Hidden in Plain Site: The Soldiers and Sailors Monument". Cleveland Visitor. Independence, Ohio: City Visitor, Inc.
  4. Ted Klopp (2008-10-26). "Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument to be restored". WTAM-AM 1100. Cleveland, Ohio. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
  5. Caniglia, John (20 March 2009). "Making Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument like new". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  6. Davis, Dale (28 May 2011). "Black Civil War veterans to be added to Cleveland's Soldiers & Sailors Monument, honored on Memorial Day". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland. Retrieved 2011-06-01.
  7. DeJong, Lisa; Dealer, The Plain (2019-06-19). "Civil War Colored Troops veterans are added to Roll of Honor at Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument". cleveland. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
  8. Evelyn Theiss (5 June 2010). "Cleveland's Soldiers and Sailors Monument reopens". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland. Retrieved 2011-06-01.
  9. Susan Love (2 June 2010). "Historic emblems restored in the gardens of Cleveland's Soldiers and Sailors Monument". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland. Retrieved 2011-06-01.

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