New York Street Memorial Bridge, (sculpture).

New York Street Memorial Bridge, (sculpture).

Seidel, Emory, sculptor.

New York Street Memorial Bridge, (sculpture).

John Pershing Memorial Bridge, (sculpture).

Victory, (sculpture).

Memory. (sculpture).

Dedicated Nov. 11, 1931.

Sculpture of Victory: bronze; Sculptures of Memory: concrete; Eagles: bronze; Military relief: bronze; Base: limestone.

Sculpture of Victory: approx. H. 19.5 ft.; Sculptures of Memory: approx. 10 ft. 6 in.

On the north side of the Pershing Memorial Bridge stands a large bronze female figure representing Victory. The figure is dressed in long robes and holds a laurel branch in her raised proper right hand. The sculpture is installed on a limestone base that is carved on the front with a relief depicting a family during peace time. The family is emblematic of the sanctity of the American home, with the mother holding an infant, and the father holding a hammer symbolizing honest labor. Below the relief is a bronze plaque describing John Joseph Pershing. Flanking the relief are two bronze eagles. On the south side of the Pershing Memorial Bridge is a bronze relief with figures representing the branches of the armed services. The relief is mounted on a limestone base that is flanked with two bronze eagles. Capping the pylons of the bridge, two at each end, are four identical concrete figures representing Memory. Each figure shows a hooded female figure in a kneeling position, her eyes closed in retrospection. In one hand she holds a wreath and in the other she holds a World War I helmet.

Allegory -- Other -- Triumph

Allegory -- Civic -- Peace

Allegory -- Other -- Memory

History -- United States -- World War I

Animal -- Bird -- Eagle

Outdoor Sculpture -- Illinois -- Aurora

Administered by City of Aurora, Public Art Commission, 44 East Downer Place, Aurora, Illinois 60507

Located New York Street Memorial Bridge, New York Street, Aurora, Illinois

The bridge was designed to commemorate the veterans of World War I. The original bridge design, prepared by City Engineer Walter E. Deuchler, did not include sculpture, but residents proposed that the bridge incorporate commemorative sculpture. Emory Seidel and Karl Miller, of Chicago's Siedel Studios, were selected by the city council in 1930 to design and sculpt the commemorative sculpture. Siedel designed not only the sculptures and reliefs, but also the railings and light fixtures. Fund raising began with the Roosevelt-Aurora Post #84 of the American Legion and continued through the efforts of a Citizen Memorial Bridge Committee and City of Aurora public officials. The estimated cost for the project was $16,000. IAS files contain booklet "The Historic Structures of Stolp Island."

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Illinois survey, 1993.

Deering, Roberta, and Joseph McElroy, "The Historic Structures of Stolp Island," Aurora, IL: City of Aurora, 1988.

SOS Conservation Treatment Award, 1999.

SOS Conservation Treatment Award, 2001.

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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