Ohio Capitol Square
Part 3. The Monuments and Sculptors
Capitol Square is a beautiful garden filled with a wide variety of plantings, monuments, and sculptures. There are guides available in the Map Room that can point you to specific examples of trees and plants commonly found in Ohio, but my primary interest is in the monuments and sculptures. Here is what I found.
The Ohio Veterans Plaza stretches across the east side of Capitol Square in front of the Senate Building. At each end is a fountain and monument honoring those that have served since World War II. The monument includes letters written home during the wars. It was designed by Schooley Caldwell Associates, 1998, the architects that also designed the Capitol Atrium.
The Ohio Holocaust and Liberators Memorial includes the story of one survivor of the holocaust on a bronze monument formed as an open book with the Star of David inside. The monument honors the victims, liberators, and survivors of the Holocaust from World War II. It was designed by architect Daniel Libeskind in 2014.
Daniel Libeskind, born in 1946 in Łódź Poland to parents that were Holocaust survivors. After the war the family moved to Israel and then New York City. He studied at Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, apprenticed under John Hejduk and Richard Meier, and continued his studies at the University of Essex. In 1989 he founded Studio Daniel Libeskind in partnership with his wife Nina, completing many significant national and international architectural works.
The Christopher Columbus Discovery Monument honors Christopher Columbus, 1401 to 1506, who was an explorer of the Americas, which helped open North America to colonization, and for whom the Ohio capital city is named. The monument was designed by sculptor Alphons Pelzer in 1892 for the Pontifical College Josephinum and then moved to Capitol Square in 1932.
Alphons Pelzer, also spelled Alfonso Pelzer, was born in Germany and came to the United States in the 1890s. He worked for the W. H. Mullins studio in Salem Ohio and created several sculptural works before returning to Germany.
The Spirit of ’98 Memorial is a veterans memorial to those that served in the Spanish-American War in Cuba and Porto Rico, the Philippine Insurrection in the Philippine Islands, and the China Relief Expedition from 1898 to 1902. The memorial was sculpted by Frank Jirouch in 1928.
Frank Jirouch, 1878 to 1970, was born in Cleveland Ohio and studied at the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts and in Paris at the Académie Jullen. Jirouch is known for his participation in the 1932 Summer Olympics Art Competition in Los Angeles, and his many outdoor sculptures in the Cleveland area.
The William McKinley Monument honors William McKinley, 1843 to 1901, who represented Ohio and our country as a state representative, governor, vice president, and then as the 25th President of the United States. Additional sculptures to each side represent Peace and Prosperity. The monument is by sculptors Hermon Atkins MacNeil, with assistance from his wife, Carol Brooks MacNeil in 1906.
Peace and Prosperity represent two of McKinley’s greatest accomplishments, which were Peace in the execution and resolution of the Spanish-American War, and Prosperity in the economic recovery from the Panic of 1893.
Hermon Atkins MacNeil, 1866 to 1947, was born in Everett Massachusetts and studied at the Massachusetts Normal Art School, in Paris with Henri Chapu and Alexandre Falguière, and later in Rome. He became noted for numerous sculptures of American Indians and for the design of the Standing Liberty Quarter from 1916.
Carol Brooks MacNeil, 1871 to 1944, was born in Chicago where she studied at the Art Institute of Chicago under Lorado Taft, and in Paris with Frederick William MacMonnies and Jean Antoine Injalbert. She was a member of the White Rabbits, a group of women sculptors that worked on the 1893 World Columbian Exposition with Lorado Taft.
The Ohio World War Memorial also known as The Doughboy, which was a popular nickname for American infantrymen during World War I, was designed to honor those that served. The memorial is by sculptor Arthur Ivone in 1930.
Arthur Ivone was born in Naples Italy in 1894 and later moved to Hamilton Ohio where he lived and worked according to the 1940 census records.
These are My Jewels Monument was created for the 1893 World Columbian Exposition held in Chicago to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s arrival to the New World in 1492. It was relocated to the Capitol Square in 1894. The monument depicts the Roman allegorical figure of Cornelia watching over life size statues of General William T. Sherman, General Ulysses S. Grant, General Philip Sheridan, Secretary Edwin Stanton, President James A. Garfield, President Rutherford B. Hayes, and Secretary Salmon P. Chase in honor of those from Ohio that served the Union. The monument is by sculptor Levi Scofield, 1894.
The figure of Cornelia is taken from Roman historical records where when asked about her jewels, presented her sons proclaiming “these are my jewels.” Here she presents these men from Ohio that contributed to the Union’s success during the Civil War as Ohio’s jewels.
William Tecumseh Sherman, 1820 to 1891, was born in Lancaster Ohio and served as Major General during the Civil war and as Commanding General of the US Army after the war.
Ulysses S. Grant, 1822 to 1885, was born in Point Pleasant Ohio and served as General during the Civil War, and as the 18th President of the United States.
Philip Sheridan, 1831 to 1888, was born in Albany New York but grew up in Somerset Ohio. He served as General during the Civil War and later as Commanding General of the US Army.
Edwin Stanton, 1814 to 1869, was born in Steubenville Ohio, and served as US Secretary of War during the Civil War. He was later appointed Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court by Ulysses S. Grant.
James A. Garfield, 1831 to 1881, was born in Moreland Hills Ohio and served as a Major General during the Civil War, and later as the 20th President of the United States.
Rutherford B. Hayes, 1822 to 1893, was born in Delaware Ohio and served as Brigadier General and Major General during the Civil War, and later as the 19th President of the United States.
Salmon P. Chase, 1808 to 1873, was born in Cornish New Hampshire but moved to Cincinnati Ohio where he set up a legal practice that defended many fugitive slaves in court. He served as U.S. Secretary of Treasury during the Civil War and later as Chief Justice of the United States.
Levi Tucker Scofield, 1842 to 1917, was born in Cleveland Ohio and became a prominent architect and sculptor in Cleveland. He trained as a builder and architect under his father William Benedict Scofield, and served as a Captain in the 103rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry as an engineer during the Civil War.
The Peace Memorial is a Civil War memorial honoring the women and those that served and supported the Union cause. The sculpture is by Bruce Wilder Saville, 1923.
Bruce Wilder Saville, 1893 to 1939, was born in Quincy Massachusetts and studied at Boston Art Normal School with Cyrus Dallin. He then worked in the studio of Theo Alice, Ruggles Kitson and Henry Hudson Kitson until World War I when he enlisted with the French Ambulance Corps, and later transferred to the US Army Corps of Engineers. After the war he traveled and studied in Europe and then in the 1920s he taught sculpture at the Ohio State University and Columbus Art School. He moved to Santa Fe New Mexico around 1930 where many of his works can be found in the New Mexico Museum of Art.
Travel Notes
The Capitol Square is a beautiful and peaceful site in the middle of a busy city that provides a place to learn and reflect on our history and accomplishments. From the Capitol Square you can walk down to East Bank Park along the Scioto River. Its an easy walk with beautiful views, buildings, and more sculptures along the way. Here were three more along my trek back in 2019.
Intersect, represents the Huntington National Bank that has been in existence at this intersection and in this diverse community since 1866 when opened by Pelatiah Webster Huntington. The sculpture is by Stephen Canneto, 1992.
Christopher Columbus, was a gift from the citizens of Genoa Italy where Columbus was born. The statue stood in front of the Columbus City Hall in 2019, but has since been removed.
Quest, funded by the Ohio Percent for Art Program was sculpted by Stephen Canneto at Canneto Studios, 2003. It represents the strength of educators to empower students to achieve their goals, with the multicolored sphere representing the students’ diversity.
Stephen Frank Canneto was born in Fort Monmouth New Jersey in 1943. He is an American artist that has produced numerous modern art works primarily in the Columbus area.
When you visit be sure to take time to wander. Columbus has many sights downtown and along the river with restaurants and cafés like Jack & Benny’s where I had lunch.
My first few capitol visits in 2019 led to publishing a few photos with facts in a slide show format, but my interests have expanded since then to include more photography and writing about the details of how the capitols came to be and the architects and artisans behind the scenes. Join me as I will probably be backtracking on a few more.
Notes and References
Story and photographs by David Smitherman, with data collected from onsite inscriptions and brochures, Wikipedia, and Google Maps. Site visits were made in July 2019 and July 2024.
Monuments: https://www.ohiostatehouse.org/about/capitol-square/statues-and-monuments.
Daniel Libeskind: https://libeskind.com/.
Frank Jirouch: https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/921539.
Stephen Canneto: https://www.cannetostudios.com/.