Broadway Fountain, (sculpture).

Broadway Fountain, (sculpture).

Andre, J. P. Victor, sculptor.

Karkadoulias, Eleftherios, founder.

Janes Kirtland & Co., contractor.

Rankin & White, fabricator.

Broadway Fountain, (sculpture).

Centennial Fountain, (sculpture).

Original ca. 1876. Dedicated Sept. 28, 1886. Rededicated Aug. 1980.

Digital Reference:

Fountain: bronze; Pool: marble.

Fountain: approx. H. 27 ft.; Pool: approx. Diam. 35 1/2 ft.

An ornate, two-tiered, bronze fountain topped by a classical female figure wearing drapery. Her proper left arm is raised, hand on her head. She holds an object in her proper right arm from which water spouts. She is mounted in a shallow basin supported by a pedestal decorated with reeds, cattails, and two storks or cranes. Below them is an ornately festooned octagonal basin supported by an eight-sided pedestal with coffered panels, around which are four evenly positioned Tritons blowing horns. Two of the Tritons hold their horns in their proper right hand with proper left hand on their waist. The other two hold their hands in opposite positions. The Tritons are mounted on projecting blocks. The fountain is set in a twelve-sided pool. Twelve evenly spaced flower urns are placed around the top of the pool.

Figure female -- Full length

Object -- Other -- Container

Object -- Foliage -- Cattail

Animal -- Bird -- Crane

Animal -- Bird -- Stork

Mythology -- Classical -- Triton

Object -- Musical Instrument -- Horn

Object -- Other -- Shell

Outdoor Sculpture -- Indiana -- Madison

Administered by City of Madison, 101 West Main Street, Madison, Indiana 47250

Located Broadway Esplanade, North of Main Street, Madison, Indiana

Centennial International Exhibition, Philadelphia, 1876.

The fountain cost approximately $3,500 and was presented to the City of Madison by the International Order of the Odd Fellows and Jefferson County during a dedication ceremony on September 28, 1886. The organization raised money through public subscription to purchase the fountain from Janes Kirtland & Co. of New York City. The firm had secured the fountain from the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition of 1876. The sculpture was designed by French artist J. P. Victor Andre and cast out of iron. The firm of Rankin & White built the esplanade and installed the fountain. It was initially called the "Centennial Fountain," but through the years it came to be known as the "Broadway Fountain."

In 1976, as part of Madison's Bicentennial project, an effort took shape to restore the fountain. The Madison City Council adopted a resolution establishing the Broadway Fountain preservation fund. In the late 1970s the entire metal portion of the fountain was recast in bronze by Eleftherios Karkadoulias. A plaque on limestone block south of fountain reads: THIS FOUNTAIN/WAS REDESIGNED AND CAST IN BRONZE/BY ELEFTHERIOS KARKADOULIAS,/CINCINNATI, OHIO WITH FUNDS FROM/THE BICENTENNIAL CITIZENS OF/HISTORIC MADISON INDIANA AS A/GIFT TO THE TRICENTENNIAL CITIZENS/AND FOR GENERATIONS THEREAFTER./WARREN R. RUCKER/MAYOR/PHILIP W. MCCAULEY/CHAIRMAN. The fountain was rededicated in August of 1980. IAS files contain an article from the Madison Courier, Aug. 11, 1980.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Indiana 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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