Fort Moore Pioneer Monument, (sculpture).

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		Outdoor Sculpture -- California -- Los Angeles
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Fort Moore Pioneer Monument, (sculpture).

Kreis, Henry, 1899-1963, sculptor.

Stewart, Albert, 1900-1965, sculptor.

Adachi, Kazumi, architect.

Nagano, Dike, architect.

Kadel, Ernest, fabricator.

Dohm, Howard, fabricator.

Gladding, McBean & Company, fabricator.

Fort Moore Pioneer Monument, (sculpture).

1954-1956. Dedicated July 3, 1957.

Digital Reference:

Terra cotta, brick, concrete.

Terra cotta relief wall: approx. H. 78 ft. x W. 43 ft.; Pylon: approx. H. 68 ft.; Eagle: approx. H. 16 ft. x W. 11 ft.; Brick wall: approx. L. 237 ft.

(On proper left lower edge of largest relief:) HENRY KREIS SC./1954-56 (Below largest relief:) ON THIS SITE STOOD/FORT MOORE BUILT BY THE/MORMON BATTALION DURING/THE WAR WITH MEXICO./THIS MEMORIAL HONORS THE TROOPS/WHO HELPED TO WIN THE SOUTHWEST./THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES WAS RAISED HERE ON JULY 4TH, 1847/BY UNITED STATES TROOPS AT THE FIRST INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION IN LOS ANGELES./THE UNITED STATES 1ST DRAGOONS/THE NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS/WHO CAME BY SEA/THE MORMON BATTALION WHICH MADE ONE OF THE LONGEST/AND MOST ARDUOUS INFANTRY MARCHES IN HISTORY

(On agricultural relief panel:) ON RANCHOS WHERE HERDS OF CATTLE/RANGED PIONEERS BUILT HOMES AND/PLANTED VINEYARDS AND ORANGE GROVES (On industrial relief panel:) THE PRAIRIE SCHOONER STAGE AND/IRON HORSE BROUGHT MANY SETTLERS/WHO MADE LOS ANGELES A CITY (On water and power panel:) WATER AND POWER HAVE MADE OUR ARID LAND FLOURISH/MAY WE KEEP FAITH WITH THE PIONEERS WHO BROUGHT US THESE GIFTS (On relief panel on wall in front of flagpole:) THE MORMON BATTALION RECRUITED/FROM THE CAMPS OF MORMON PIONEERS/...JULY 16/1846/ THE MARCH TO SANTA FE AND THE OPENING OF THE/FIRST WAGON ROAD TO THE PACIFIC HELPED TO END/THE ISOLATION OF THE WEST AND INSPIRED THE/GADSDEN PURCHASE OF 1853./BATTALION MEMBERS TOOK PART/IN EVENTS WHICH USHERED IN THE/AMERICAN ERA OF CALIFORNIA HISTORY/THE MEMORY OF...(transcription ends) (On pylon below eagle relief:) FORT MOORE/PIONEER MEMORIAL/TO THE BRAVE MEN AND WOMEN/WHO WITH TRUST IN GOD/FACED PRIVATION AND DEATH/IN EXTENDING THE FRONTIERS/OF OUR COUNTRY TO INCLUDE/THIS LAND OF PROMISE signed

Site-specific monument consisting of several elements. A large concrete pylon stands at the right end of the memorial. A terra-cotta bas-relief eagle is located on the front facade of the pylon near the top. The eagle is shown in profile and faces left. It grasps arrows in one foot and branches in the other. In front of the pylon is a flagpole. In front of the flagpole is a low wall with bas-relief scenes from the pioneer history of California. Scenes include pioneer family groups, men signing up to go west, a covered wagon and soldiers working. Running from behind the pylon and continuing to the left of the monument is a 237-foot brick wall. Incorporated into the design of the wall is an 80-foot wide wall fountain.

At the far left end of the monument is a terra-cotta wall featuring three small bas-reliefs aligned vertically on the right side; and a large bas-relief covering the left side. The smaller bas-relief on the top represents agriculture. It depicts a man standing next to a cow. Behind the cow are orange trees and ranch buildings. The middle relief represents industry and transportation. It depicts a man standing on the left; on the right is a stage coach with a team of horses. In the background is a steam train. The bottom small relief panel represents water and power. It depicts a mother, father and son standing on the right. To their left are mountains with a rain cloud; pipes lead down to a city. In the foreground are large power line towers. The large bas-relief depicts the raising of the first American flag at Fort Moore in 1847. An officer on horseback is on the left. He watches as two soldiers raise the flag. Another soldier plays the bugle. A group of soldiers stand in front of the flagpole, and watch the flag raising.

Outdoor Sculpture -- California -- Los Angeles

Architectural component

Administered by County of Los Angeles, Internal Services Department, Los Angeles, California

Located Hill Street, near Highway 101 overpass, Los Angeles, California

The monument was built by the County of Los Angeles in cooperation with the Department of Water and Power, the Board of Education and the City of Los Angeles. Adachi and Nagano designed the monument. Kreis sculpted the large bas-relief, and Stewart sculpted the pylon's eagle. Gladding McBean & Company were responsible for the terra cotta fabrication; Kadel and Dohm were the fabricators. The fountain was turned off in 1973 during the energy crisis, and has not been restored. IAS files contain transcriptions of two plaques on the monument. IAS files contain copies of several related articles from journals and newspapers; and excerpt from Michael Several's "The Public Art of Los Angeles: Part I", 1991.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, California survey, 1994.

Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Civic Art Program, 2015.

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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Horizon Information Portal 3.25_9382

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