The Smith Memorial: Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren, (sculpture).

The Smith Memorial: Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren, (sculpture).

Bissell, George Edwin, 1839-1920, sculptor.

Windrim, James H., 1840-1919, architect.

Windrim, John T., architect.

Calder, Alexander Stirling, 1870-1945, sculptor.

The Smith Memorial: Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren, (sculpture).

Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren, (sculpture).

Commissioned May 6, 1898. 1901 or 1904.

Sculpture: bronze; Base: limestone.

Sculpture: approx. 4 x 4 x 2 ft.; Base: approx. 6 x 4 x 2 ft.

George Bissell/Sculptor 1904 (Base:) Dahlgren signed

The Smith Memorial stands at the entrance to the west side of Fairmount Park and consists of two curving, neobaroque arches adorned with thirteen individual portrait sculptures (2 equestrians, 3 figures, and 8 busts); two eagles standing on globes; and architectural reliefs of 8 allegorical figures. The portrait of John Dahlgren, dressed in his military uniform, is one of eight busts each installed in its own niche on the exterior of the arch. Dahlgren faces forward and looks off to his proper left.

Portrait male -- Dahlgren, John A. -- Bust

Occupation -- Military -- Admiral

Dress -- Uniform -- Military Uniform

Outdoor Sculpture -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia

Coadministered by City of Philadelphia, Fairmount Park Commission, Memorial Hall, West Park, P. O. Box 21601, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19131

Coadministered by Fidelity Bank, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Located Fairmount Park, West side of park, North Concourse Drive, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Inscription on memorial reads: THIS/ MONUMENTAL MEMORIAL/ PRESENTED BY/ RICHARD SMITH/ TYPE FOUNDER/ OF PHILADELPHIA -/ IN MEMORY OF/ PENNSYLVANIANS WHO/ TOOK PART IN THE CIVIL WAR/ THEIR STRIFE WAS NOT FOR/ AGGRANDIZEMENT AND WHEN/ CONFLICT CEASED THE NORTH/ WITH THE SOUTH UNITED AGAIN/ TO ENJOY THE COMMON HERITAGE/ LEFT BY THE FATHERS OF OUR/ COUNTRY RESOLVING THAT/ THEREAFTER ALL OUR PEOPLE/ SHOULD DWELL TOGETHER/ IN UNITY.

In 1891, Richard Smith (1821-1894), a wealthy Philadelphia electroplate and type founder, created a will which provided $500,000 for a memorial arch to be adorned with portraits of Pennsylvania's Civil War military and naval heroes. Smith deposited the model and designs for the memorial with the Fidelity Insurance Trust and Safe Deposit Company and stipulated that John B. Gest, president of Fidelity, should handle his request; that the architectural designs and construction should be handled by Philadelphia architect James H. Windrim; and that the selection and supervision of sculptors for the specified portraits should be handled by the Fairmount Park Art Association. The will went into effect upon the death of Smith's wife in 1895,but it was not until 1897 that the Fairmount Park Art Association began work on selecting the sculptors. On May 8, 1898, the initial commissions were awarded, but it took until 1912 before the last sculpture was completed and installed on the arch.

For the eight portrait busts, the Fairmount Park Art Association decided that a uniform base was needed. The base designed by Alexander Stirling Calder for his bust of General Hartranft was chosen as the standard for all of the busts on the arch. SOS! surveyor reported the execution date as 1904 and noted the date 1904 in the inscription; however, the SOS! survey cover sheet notes the execution date as 1901 and the Fairmount Park Art Association publication notes that the bust was cast by June 1901.

Public Monument Conservation Project, 1986.

Fairmount Park Art Assoc., "Sculpture of a City: Philadelphia's Treasures in Bronze & Stone," NY: Walker Publ., 1974, pg. 168-179.

Bach, Penny Balkin, "Public Art in Philadelphia," Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1992, pg. 208.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia survey, 1993.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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