Post by Deleted on Jan 14, 2017 8:25:07 GMT -5
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Indiana Soldiers and Sailors Monument becomes national landmark
Start Date: 1/13/2017
Event Description:
Two important structures in Indiana have earned spots on the list of National Historic Landmarks.
On Jan. 11, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewel named the Indiana Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Indianapolis and the West Union Covered Bridge in Parke County to the list.
Administered by the National Park Service (NPS), the National Historic Landmark program recognizes “the best of the best” properties that provide insight to our national heritage. It is different from the National Register of Historic Places designation.
DNR’s Division of Historic Preservation & Archaeology has two important roles in the National Historic Landmark program: pointing out potential candidates to NPS and helping review nominations.
The Soldiers and Sailors Monument was included as an expansion of the Indiana World War Memorials Historic District, which includes the already-designated World War Memorial Plaza to the north. The new nomination recognizes world-class civic designs that have shaped the image of Indianapolis.
The history of grand memorials in Indianapolis began with the planning of the Indiana Soldiers and Sailors Monument in 1887. In that year, the newly formed Board of Monument Commissioners held an international competition and selected a design by Bruno Schmitz, one of the best-known monument designers in Germany. Built of Indiana limestone, the monument stands 284.5 feet tall from street level. In 1902, when it was dedicated, the monument dominated Monument Circle.
The National Historic Landmark nomination cites the exceptional nature of the Indiana monument. It is the largest of more than 200 Civil War memorials in the U.S. and the only one that combines large-scale sculpture in bronze and stone. The monument also set the trend for civic architecture in Indianapolis, which led to the construction of the Indiana World War Memorial and its plaza in the 1920s. Together, the monuments and sculpture of the Indiana World War Memorials Historic District form a world-class civic design.
The West Union Bridge was cited in a recent Covered Bridges National Historic Landmark Context Study for its exceptional integrity of workmanship and materials. The study, generated by the National Park Service, winnowed America’s hundreds of timber truss covered bridges down to the 20 best examples, and West Union made the cut.
The Parke County Commissioners hired master craftsman J.J. Daniels to build the West Union span in 1876. Daniels was known for his Burr truss bridges, a structural design that combines the old triangular king post truss with arched beams for additional bracing. Like most timber bridge builders in the U.S., Daniels specified wooden siding along the flanks of the bridge to protect the costly timber frame from the elements. The bridge spans 346 feet over picturesque Sugar Creek.