| The Pennsylvania State Memorial | |
| Pennsylvania Monument[1]:69 | |
| historic district contributing property[2] | |
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Northward view: The memorial commmemorates Union leaders with larger-than-life bronze statues:
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| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State | Pennsylvania |
| County | Adams |
| NPS unit | Gettysburg National Military Park |
| Landform | Cemetery Ridge[3] |
| Parts | •crowning bronze sculpture •pavilion with dome, observation deck, & 4 supporting towers •pedestal with plaza & stairway •perimeter walkway for viewing tablets above lawn[1]:37 |
| Location | triangle of Hancock, Humphreys, & Pleasonton avenues |
| Highest point | tip of sword |
| - location | top of crowning sculpture |
| - elevation | 21 ft (6.4 m) over dome's podium 110 ft (34 m) over lawn |
| - coordinates | |
| Appropriations Dedicated Niche statues Re-dedicated Modified Re-dedicated |
1905[4]:98 September 27, 1910 commissioned 1911, installed April 23, 1913 July 4, 1913 (National Day) 1914 (945 names) July 1, 1986[5] |
| Entrance | front stairway in pedestal on SW (Hancock Av) side |
| Historic District Ent'd-Doc'd GNMP structure |
75000155 01/24/2004 MN260 [2] |
| Style Designer |
Beaux-Arts[6] triumphal arch W. Liance Cottrell [2] |
| Superstructure Substructure Weight |
granite & bronze concrete & granite 3,840 STf (3,430 LTf) [6] |
The Pennsylvania State Memorial[2] is an American Civil War monument on the Gettysburg Battlefield, that commemorates the 34,530 Pennsylvania soldiers who fought in the Battle of Gettysburg and are listed on the Bronze tablets on the monument's walls.[1]
Contents |
A granite Beaux-arts pavilion crowned by a dome with sculpture, and set upon a 100-foot-square base, it is the largest monument on the Gettysburg Battlefield.[6] The 4 corner towers are architectural piers linked by arches, and a spiral staircase within the northwest tower leads to an observation deck. Stairs beneath each arch rise to the central domed interior of the pavilion's memorial hall. Flanking the arches are spandrel bas-reliefs of goddesses, and above them are bas-relief parapet panels depicting the Artillery, Cavalry, Infantry, and Signal Corps.[1] The piers' engaged columns form niches for the statues.
The domed pavilion uses North Carolina granite over a frame of iron-reinforced concrete and cost $240,000[3] (~$4 million in year 2000 dollars).[9]
The Battle of Gettysburg, Second Day, Union battle lines now marked with monuments along Hancock Avenue near the memorial were occupied by artillery and, late in the day, reinforced with infantry.[10] Previously-placed Gettysburg monuments commemorating the state include the 72nd Pennsylvania Infantry Monuments of 1883 and 1891 at The Angle.
Former governor Andrew G. Curtin's idea for the "Pennsylvania Memorial Hall" originated prior to a legislative bill vetoed by Governor Beaver in 1889 for a hall on Little Round Top to display "a treasury of trophies and mementos of all the Pennsylvania regiments that fought at Gettysburg",[11] and which was to be 60 ft (18 m) across.[12] Instead, the current site was selected in 1909[2] and the PA memorial was planned for completion with a peace memorial for the battle's 50th anniversary[8] (the latter was completed in 1938). After the PA memorial structure was completed in 1910, Humphreys Avenue on the east side was surveyed in 1911.[13]:'11 The Pennsylvania State Monument was rededicated on National Day at the 1913 Gettysburg reunion (Red Cross rest station no. 8 was near the memorial).[1]:69 In 1929, the monument's copper was relined and defective woodwork was replaced.[13]:'30 The Humphreys Av comfort station near the memorial was completed in 1933 as the first Gettysburg Parkitecture structure[14] using Gettysburg granite as for the native colonial structures (e.g., 1776 Dobbin House Tavern)in the Gettysburg Battlefield Historic District.
| External images | |
|---|---|
| Overhead view (Google Maps) | |
| 1913 image with cannon | |
| May 17, 1913, image of steps & Lincoln statue | |
| Model w/ swag on dome | |