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Horace Julian Bond was one of the many distinguished leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement. Bond was born in Nashville, on January 14, 1940 and five years later, the family moved to Pennsylvania after his father, Horace Mann Bond, was appointed to the presidency of Lincoln University. Horace Bond was the first African American to lead Lincoln, and growing up around educators inspired young Julian to attend Morehouse College in Atlanta.Julian became a founding member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) while attending school served as the organization's Communications Director from 1961 to 1966. During these years, Bond documented many student protests against segregation. His leadership was critical to the success of the Freedom Rides in 1961, and his efforts to support the hundreds of participants as they challenged segregation in interstate travel saved the lives of many young activists. After graduating from Morehouse, Bond helped establish the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and served as the organization’s president from 1971 to 1979. In 1965, Bond became a member of the Georgia House of Representatives. He ran for the U.S. House of Representatives but lost to John Lewis, a leader of the Civil Rights Movement. Bond served as the Chairman of the NAACP for eleven years. In his later years, Bond became a Distinguished Visiting Professor at American University and a professor in the history department at the University of Virginia.Julian died in August of 2015 when he was 75 years old. His widow, Pam Horowitz, stated that he “always wanted a bench” that would bring people together. He preferred a bench over a monument to commemorate his life, and the only thing he was unsure of was exactly where the bench would be placed. Before he passed away, he helped with creating the plaque that would be on the bench, which states, “In Memory of Julian Bond, 1940-2015, ‘Race Man,’ a Life Dedicated to Civil Rights.” Bond preferred a bench over a statue because he wanted people to be able to sit down, talk to one another, and discuss how to make the world a better place. An article published by the Washington Post portrayed the bench’s publication as a long fight with the bureaucracy. However, Bond’s widow, Pam Horowitz, corrects this narrative. According to Horowitz, there was never a disagreement about whether the city would honor Julian in this way. Towards the end of the process, the city’s mayor and councilwoman were arguing about entirely unrelated things, and the bench got tied up in that larger issue in a way that led to rumors. Horowitz believes that someone had sent a message to the Post that claimed the bench was being delayed. The mayor and councilwoman both attended the dedication. In retrospect, it seems that the article spread more awareness of the memorial.Julian Bond’s bench was dedicated on June 26, 2017, and is located in the 5600 block of Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, D.C., in front of the Chevy Chase Community Center. Today, there are more of Julian’s Benches popping up everywhere on college campuses across the nation. There are also other forms of honor popping up as well. For example, there are two benches and a monument in his honor at American University next to the building he taught at while he was a professor there. The University of Virginia opened a brand new dormitory in 2019 that’s named “Bond House” in honor of him. They also have a chair in the History Department named after him.He had one more wish aside from the bench being placed, and that was to be cremated, and his ashes be spread in the Gulf of Mexico. His immediate family gave notice to friends and family and told them that in place of a ceremony, they could sprinkle flower petals in moving water, wherever they were, at 3:00 PM Central Standard Time. Bond’s widow, Pam Horowitz, received photos from all over the world. A few examples include pictures from across the states, Europe, and Hungary. The Southern Poverty Law Center created a video containing all of the scatterings to show at his memorial service on October 6 in Washington, D.C. Dear friend, Joan C. Browning, contacted everyone who received the notice and asked them to take pictures as they were doing this. She then created a booklet of these stories and photos in honor of Horace Julian Bond to give to his wife and family.

Located in Chevy Chase, Washington, D.C., in front of the Chevy Chase Community Center, this bench commemorates the life of civil rights leader Julian Bond. The bench was dedicated in memory of Julian Bond on Monday, June 26, 2017. Bond helped establish and lead the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and documented the Freedom Rides of 1961 to desegregate buses and other means of public transportation, as well as the stations and depots that served interstate travelers. When Bond passed, many of the veterans of the Civil Rights movement expressed a desire to create a memorial. "We were prepared to build the Washington Monument for Julian,” explained Freedom Rider and friend Joan Browning. "All he wanted was a bench." Family and friends, including many of the Freedom Riders who attribute Bond's leadership as the reason they survived angry mobs, have worked to dedicated several other benches in honor of Julian Bond since the dedication of this bench outside Chevy Chase's community center.

The bench's plaque that memorializes civil rights leader, Julian Bond. 

Julian Bond Memorial Bench

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The building consists of four floors and a two-level basement, which houses a large gymnasium, making it both the largest and most sophisticated Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) building in the state of West Virginia. The interior of the building has retained its original oak woodwork and fixtures and is virtually unchanged. The building also has many of its original furnishings, including cut-glass mirrors, mission-style and wicker furniture, and 1920s artwork.The Morgantown chapter of WCTU was formed in 1884 with 19 initiating members. The chapter’s first president was Elizabeth Moore, a founder of Morgantown’s Woodburn Female Seminary and the area’s leading proponent of women’s education.The WCTU Community Building was home to many of the humanitarian projects that the Morgantown chapter of the WCTU undertook in the areas of women’s suffrage, health and education, and the prohibition of alcohol.However, despite the chapter’s high membership, the WCTU Community Building was not completed until 1919. In fact, it took the WCTU five years to raise the money for the center through continuous fundraisers, benefit plays and concerts, help from other WCTU chapters and other civic organizations, and $20,000 left in the will of a former chapter president.Although the Morgantown chapter of the WCTU shrunk substantially with the repeal of prohibition and the onset of the Great Depression, the WCTU Community Building still stands as a reminder of the era in which women proved that they could constitute a deciding force in national politics and mores, with or without the power of the vote. The WCTU Community Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.Lenna Lowe Yost was born on January 25, 1878 in Basnettville, Marion County, West Virginia. Prior to her marriage, she attended Ohio Northern University and West Virginia Wesleyan College to study art. Yost and her husband, Ellis, were both active advocates of prohibition. After moving to Morgantown with her husband in 1905, Yost sought activist involvement in Morgantown’s WCTU. Her husband, through his position as a member of the House of Delegates, proposed a 1913 enforcement act to be applied to West Virginia’s 1912 prohibition amendment; this came to be known as the “Yost Law.” [1]She became the president of West Virginia’s WCTU in 1908 and quickly set her sights on incorporating women’s suffrage into the activist causes of the Temperance Union. She served as president of the WCTU for ten years. She resigned from her role of president of the WCTU in 1918, so that she could serve as legislative representative for the national WCTU and as the organization’s Washington, DC, correspondent for the Union Signal. [1]During this time, Yost also served as a member of the West Virginia Equal Suffrage Association, serving as its president from 1917 to 1919. She returned to West Virginia from Washington to lead the state in its ratification process for the 19th amendment, which would give women the right to vote. She succeeded in her efforts when West Virginia became the thirty-fourth of the thirty-six states needed to ratify the 19th amendment and guarantee women’s voting rights.Following her success with women’s suffrage, Yost continued to pursue her passion of temperance activism by becoming even more politically involved. She served as chair for the Republican National Convention that would nominate Warren G. Harding for president. Following his assumption of the office, President Harding appointed Yost as the United States’ representative at the International Congress Against Alcoholism in 1921 and 1923. [2]Yost went on to be the first West Virginian woman to hold a wide variety of positions in the state’s Republican Party and she was the first woman to be on the State Board of Education. After she moved to Washington, DC in 1930, she became the Director of the Women’s Division for the National Republican Party until her retirement in 1934.[1] She died at age 94 in Washington, DC in 1972.

This building was constructed in 1919 in the Neoclassical Revival style, which was popular for public buildings in the early 1900s. The idea behind the community center was to create a place that could provide a recreation alternative to saloons and could offer educational programs to alleviate the conditions that drove people to drink. Several notable West Virginians were involved in the temperance and women's suffrage movements, including suffragist Lenna Lowe Yost. An extraordinarily intelligent organizer, Yost dedicated her adult life to pursuing a variety of causes including a successful campaign that led West Virginia to be among the states that ratified the 19th Amendment. In addition to promoting equal political rights for women, she labored on behalf of temperance. Her activist work extended past the borders of the state of West Virginia; she worked in the nation's capital and even served as a delegate in international temperance conventions.

This building was constructed by the Women's Christian Temperance Union in 1922. 

Women's Christian Temperance Union Community Building

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José Martí (full name: José Julián Martí y Pérez) was born poor to Spanish immigrants in Havana, Cuba on January 28, 1853. Despite the unenviable circumstances of his birth, he received some formal education during his early years. Possessed of incredible intellect, Martí published several poems by the age of 15. In 1868, Cuba experienced a revolutionary uprising to overthrown Spanish rule. Martí sympathized with the revolutionaries and supported the movement for Cuban independence. The following year, he established a newspaper, La Patria Libre (“The Free Fatherland”). His support for the Cuban revolutionaries along with his political newspaper drew the ire of Spanish authorities, who arrested him. Martí was sentenced to six months hard labor and later, in 1871, was deported to Spain.  While residing in his ancestral homeland, he continued his education, earning a master’s degree and a law degree from the University of Zaragoza in 1874. After earning his degrees, Martí lived in France, Mexico, and Guatemala before returning to his native Cuba in 1878. His stay, however, proved short; Spanish authorities once again exiled him to Spain the following year. Martí then left Spain to live for a short time in France and New York City, before settling in Venezuela. There, he founded the Revista Venezolana (“Venezuelan Review”), whose articles angered the country’s dictator, Antonio Guzmán Blanco. Fearing for his safety, Martí returned to New York City. While living in the United States, he continued to write poetry, newspaper articles, and essays.  Despite being deported from Cuba twice and serving six months hard labor for his beliefs, Martí’s revolutionary spirit and desire to see his native island achieve its independence never wavered. While residing in New York City, he founded the Cuban Revolutionary Party in 1892 and began plotting an invasion of Cuba, which he and others hoped would finally bring about the end of Spanish rule on the island. Martí left New York City in late January 1895 and, after spending some time in Florida, landed in Cuba in April. The following month, on May 19, he was killed during a skirmish with Spanish forces at Dos Ríos. In the 1950s, sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington created a bronze, over-life-sized equestrian statue of Martí. The last major work of her career, she gifted the statue to the Cuban government, which donated it, along with a dark granite pedestal, to the people of New York City. In 1959, the statue was cast at the Domico Scoma bronze Works in Queens, but—in a twist of irony—a revolution in Cuba and subsequent strained diplomatic relations between Cuba and the United States delayed its dedication. In 1965, the statue—which depicts the moment Martí was fatally wounded in battle in 1895—was finally unveiled. Nearly thirty years later, in 1992, the Central Park Conservancy completed a full restoration effort on the statue. The organization financed the project through donations from Cuban-American across the United States. Today, it is one of three equestrian statues in Central Park (along with that of Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín) that honor important figures in Latin American history.

The bronze, over-life-sized equestrian statue honors the life and work of José Julián Martí (1853-1895). Born in Cuba in 1853, the poet and journalist supported Cuban independence from Spain in the late nineteenth century. Despite being deported from Cuba twice and serving six months hard labor for his beliefs, Martí’s revolutionary spirit and desire to see his native island achieve its independence never wavered. While residing in New York City, he founded the Cuban Revolutionary Party in 1892 and began plotting an invasion of Cuba, which he and others hoped would finally bring about the end of Spanish rule on the island. Martí left New York City in late January 1895 and, after spending some time in Florida, landed in Cuba in April. The following month, he was killed during a skirmish with Spanish forces at Dos Ríos. In the 1950s, sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington created the statue. The last major work of her career, she gifted the statue to the Cuban government, which donated it, along with a dark granite pedestal, to the people of New York City. In 1959, the statue was cast, but—in a twist of irony—a revolution in Cuba and subsequent strained diplomatic relations between Cuba and the United States delayed its dedication. In 1965, the statue—which depicts the moment Martí was fatally wounded in battle in 1895—was finally unveiled. Nearly thirty years later, in 1992, the Central Park Conservancy completed a full restoration effort on the statue. The organization financed the project through donations from Cuban-American across the United States. Today, it is one of three equestrian statues in Central Park (along with that of Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín) that honor important figures in Latin American history.

José Julián Martí Statue

In the early 1900s, Kansas City was rapidly expanding with central industries like agriculture and meatpacking growing alongside new industries like automobile manufacturing. After a series of floods in the West Bottoms, the city built a new railroad depot further south. Union Station opened in 1914, leaving the area around Union Depot devoid of business travelers. The new Union Station on Main Street was accompanied by the construction of new buildings and parks, and local businesses that accommodated travelers moved to be closer to the bustling rail station. Jacob Rieger and his family immigrated to America from Austria-Hungary in 1879 and arrived in Kansas City in 1885. Jacob was a businessman with experience in many trades and while Alexander was only 15 when his family arrived in Kansas City, he went straight to work. First finding work as a stockboy at G. Bernheimer Brothers Dry Goods firm, he later joined his father after the family patriarch bought a small grocery store at 3rd and Gillis. Jacob later established J. Rieger and Co., a purveyor of liquor and a distiller in the Union Depot district, the central hub of the city at the time. Alexander took over the family operations in 1900 and created a grandiose marketing campaign for the spirits, offering free gifts with his mail-order service. He claimed J. Rieger &amp; Co. products to be the “Best on Earth” and “O! So Good!”, as well as the largest mail-order whiskey house with a base of over 250,000 customers. The expansion of businesses to the south of the original urban core that accompanied the relocation of Union Station led to the creation of restaurants, barbershops, drug stores, and even a new hospital, and post office. The growth of this area prompted Alexander to build a hotel that was within walking distance of Union Station. Rieger Hotel was one of three hotels built in the vicinity of 19th &amp; Main that catered to single working men without families, traveling salesmen, and itinerant workers needing long-term accommodations. The hotel advertised 21 rooms, private baths, and a restaurant. Designed by architects Smith, Rea, and Lovitt, and built by Gray Construction Company, the three-story hotel was constructed from brick with a terracotta facade, and a large marble cornice atop the building proudly displaying the nameplate “RIEGER”. Details included ornamental ironwork, marble, tile and terrazzo floors, skylights, and metal-framed windows. While this was not a luxury hotel, it was accommodating and convenient. Alexander even commissioned a mural on the south side of the building to promote the family business, J. Rieger &amp; Co.. In late 1919, the prohibition of alcohol led the Rieger family to pivot their business. Alexander Rieger closed the hotel in 1920 and opened the Home Trust Company with his son. With the pivot to finance, the Rieger's sold this building which became home to the Travelers Hotel in 1927. The building was also home to the office for EE Porter Soft Drinks. The building became vacant in 1941 but reopened after World War II as the Milton Hotel. The hotel also leased business space, including its longest tenant Acme Decal Company, until photographer Orville Anderson purchased the building in 1962. The photographer moved his corporate office to the main level and leased the rooms on the second and third floors to the Elms Hotel. The building was sold again in 2003 and like many other buildings in the area, it was renovated to offer condos. Ryan Maybee, a Kansas City bartender, recognized a growing interest in local distilleries and believed that Kansas Citians would appreciate the option to buy locally-produced spirits under a historic name like Rieger. Maybee began by opening Manifesto, a speakeasy concept bar in the basement of the historic Rieger Hotel. Manifesto opened in 2009, and the following year Maybee partnered with chef Howard Hanna to open The Rieger Hotel Grill &amp; Exchange, a historically-themed restaurant. on the main level. On the opening night of The Rieger, the last relative of the bloodline, Andy Rieger, came in to meet the owners and agreed they should work together to bring back the former Rieger distillery. Over the next few years, this team developed a business plan and partnered with a Kansas City creative agency. After acquiring the original trademark, J. Rieger &amp; Co. was officially back in business. Inspired by the past, the new J. Rieger &amp; Co. was branded using the original name, logo, and slogan (O! So Good!), secured property in the East Bottoms neighborhood, as the original distillery was demolished, and successfully launched Rieger’s Kansas City Whiskey in October 2014. After the closure of The Rieger and Manifesto in response to COVID-19 in 2020, the former Rieger Hotel has been vacant. However, the Rieger name continues to demonstrate the spirit of Kansas City's past as the distillery produces whiskey and other spirits at their distillery two miles east of Kansas City's River Market.

Built in 1915 as one of three hotels in this part of Kansas City that catered to traveling workers, the Rieger Hotel was developed by Alexander Rieger, son of Jacob Rieger and founder of Rieger &amp; Co. distillery. The hotel accommodated traveling businessmen, workers, and other individuals needing long-term but temporary accommodations during an era that saw the growth of industry in Kansas City. The hotel was open for only a few, short years before prohibition created a challenge for the family business and Alexander responded by closing the hotel and establishing a bank. The building changed hands several times over the years, accommodating a variety of businesses, including storefronts on the first floor and apartments on the upper stories. In a nod to the building's connection to the Rieger distillery, the building was home to The Rieger restaurant on the first floor and the speakeasy-themed bar Manifesto that occupied the basement.

The Rieger Hotel Building

The arts center is located in the building that also serves as the headquarters of the transportation and industrial services company established by Richard Belger in 1919. At that time, Belger owned only one truck, but he grew the company by offering a variety of services from transportation and warehousing to crane services and custom installation and removal of heavy equipment. The company now has locations and offices in Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas.In addition to serving as the Belger Cartage Company headquarters for over a century, the building has hosted over a hundred art exhibitions dating back to 2010 when Evelyn Craft Belger and Dick Belger decided to dedicate two of the building's three stories to exhibition space and storage for their growing personal collection of mostly modern works. The couple also transformed part of the space in the industrial building where they have a loft on nearby Tracy Avenue into the Belger Crane Yard Studios. In a 2015 article for American Craft Magazine, the couple explained that they hoped opening their building to artists and providing studio space and other support would help Kansas City grow and sustain a vibrant arts community.Belger Arts Center is the first of three Belger Arts locations. Belger Crane Yard Studios (2011 Tracy Avenue) is an arts complex that opened in 2013, dedicated to providing studio and exhibition space for artists, a range of programming in ceramics education, an artist in residence program, and Crane Yard Clay ceramics supply store. The Belger Glass Annex (1219 E. 19th Street), the first public glass-blowing studio of its scale and scope, opened in 2021, providing classes, public programs, and a visiting artist program. Programming at all three locations has made Belger Arts a center for contemporary art.  Evelyn Belger explained to American Craft Magazine that part of their decision to open their home is to provide not only support but create a safe environment. "That’s another reason for us to be sure to live here," Evelyn explained. "When we first lived here, before all this [renovation work on the building], there was quite a bit of unsavory activity going on right at that dead end. In time, that has improved."

The brick structure is the national headquarters of Belger Cartage Service, Inc., a company established in Kansas City in 1919 that provides warehousing services at locations in several states along with crane,heavy hauling, and specialty transportation services nationwide. Since 2000, the building has also been home to the Belger Arts Center which has hosted over 100 contemporary art exhibitions. Exhibitions draw from the extensive Belger Collection as well as a variety of local, national, and international artists. The Belger Arts Center is open to the public and provides free guided tours along with a variety of educational experiences ranging from summer art camps for children to adult ceramics classes.

Belger Cartage Service (1919); Belger Arts Center 2000-Present

On the evening of November 14, 1970 the Marshall University football team, coaches, and their supporters took a Southern Airways flight from Kinston, North Carolina back to Huntington after losing a game against East Carolina University. Poor weather hampered visibility around the Tri-State Airport, south of Ceredo, where the flight was scheduled to land. At around 7:35 PM the plane crashed into a hill just west of the airport. All 75 passengers and crew perished, including 37 members of the football team. It was the worst air disaster in American sports history.Immediately after the tragedy a Memorial Committee was appointed by Marshall to find ways to honor the victims. Their recommendations included the installation of a plaque at Fairfield Stadium, a granite marker at Spring Hill Cemetery, and designating the new student center as a memorial. The committee also sought to build a major monument on the student center plaza. Early ideas suggested a sculpture of a bison, or a bronze statue of a football player. The committee ultimately decided to commission Italian-born sculptor Harry Bertoia to create a suitable memorial for $25,000. Bertoia designed a 13-foot tall, 6,500 pound, bronze and copper fountain sculpture; it took over a year to complete. 150 welded, copper tubes reach towards the sky, while water sprays upwards from the center and pours down into a pool. Bertoia intended for the design to “commemorate the living, rather than death, on the waters of life, rising, receding and surging so as to express upward growth, immortality and eternity.” A bronze plaque at the edge of the fountain lists the names of the 75 victims.<blockquote>"They shall live on in the hearts of their families and friends forever, and this memorial records their loss to the university and to the community." -Fountain Plaque</blockquote>The Memorial Fountain was unveiled and dedicated in a ceremony by Marshall President John G. Barker on November 12, 1972. Each year on November 14 a memorial ceremony is held at the fountain to commemorate the plane crash. Family members of the victims are invited, and the football team lays 75 white flowers at the base of the fountain as names are read. Traditionally an individual connected to the tragedy serves as the guest speaker.The Memorial Fountain underwent extensive refurbishments in 2008. This included repairs to the deteriorating base; the installation of a new granite surface and a catch tray; the replacement of pipes and electrical wiring; and an upgraded water pump for the spray to shoot higher. It was rededicated in a ceremony on April 9, 2008.

Designed by artist Harry Bertoia and dedicated in 1972, this fountain pays tribute to the victims of the 1970 Marshall University Plane Crash and the resilience of the university community. Built of welded copper and bronze tubes, the fountain is meant to represent life and upward growth. It stands in the middle of the Memorial Student Center plaza and serves as one of the major landmarks on campus. Marshall holds a memorial ceremony here each year on November 14, the anniversary of the crash. During the ceremony, the fountain is turned off in remembrance of the 75 who perished that day. The two audio files embedded within this entry include portions of speeches given at the dedication of the fountain and reflections from members of the Marshall University community. 

The fountain was built to honor the memory of the 75 who perished on November 14,1970

Marshall University Memorial Fountain 

The Savoy Hotel and Savoy Grill was constructed in four phases between 1890 and 1906 and featured a neoclassic design. The building was initially completed as a five-story structure, with a sixth story added along with rear extensions. From 1905 to 1906, a western addition was added, reaching seven stories. In the earliest years, the Savoy Grill was only open to male patrons while the hotel's dining room was open to all guests. Harry S. Truman was a frequent patron of the Savoy Grill when he operated a nearby clothing store prior to his entrance into politics, a career that was initially aided by Tom Pendergast. Truman ate at the Savoy so often that a plaque was later placed in booth number four, designating the preferred table of the former haberdashery owner who went on to become President of the United States.The Savoy Grill maintained a turn of the century feeling up throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The hotel and grill have passed through many different owners, including the Savoy Investment Company which bought the building in 1962. Donald F. Lee purchased the restaurant in 1960 and acquired the hotel five years later. The Savoy Grill was the oldest restaurant in the city and the longest continuously-operated restaurant in the western half of the United States until a 2014 fire led to its closure. In 2016, work on renovating and reopening the historic hotel began under the auspices of the 21c Museum Hotels group and the historic dining room reopened in 2018. In that same year, the museum added a work by artist Brad Kahlhamer within the Savoy Grill that was inspired by Native American dream catchers and intended to help balance the historic murals that celebrate European-American expansion.

This historic Kansas City building was home to the Savoy Hotel starting in 1888. Five years later, the hotel added the Savoy Grill, the longest-operating restaurant west of the Mississippi River. The restaurant and hotel closed following a 2014 fire, but the building was later renovated and reopened by the 21c hotel chain to include a contemporary art museum along with many tributes to the history of the former historic establishment. Soon after the hotel reopened, the former dining room of the Savoy Grill reopened as the Savoy at 21c Restaurant. Visitors to the restaurant can sit in a booth that was the preferred location of Harry S. Truman and view a series of historically significant murals that were created as part of the restaurant's 1903 opening. These murals by Edward Holslag depict early Kansas City history from pioneers departing Westport on the Sante Fe Trail to the arrival of steamboats on the Missouri River. A short hallway connects these historical works to a contemporary art museum that is open to the public 24 hours a day within the new hotel's lobby. A virtual tour of the hotel's art gallery and restaurant, including the murals by Edward Holsalg, is available within this entry.

The Savoy Grill now operates as the restaurant of the 21c Hotel much as it did for the Savoy Hotel

Savoy Hotel and Savoy Grill (1888-2014); The Savoy at 21c and 21c Museum Hotel Kansas City

In 1792, the first U.S. Mint facility in Philadelphia was constructed at Seventh and Arch Streets, where it was guarded by the U.S. Mint Police. Production was slow, as the machines were rudimentary compared to today, and the facility relied heavily on the labor of humans and horses for power. Currency produced at the mint included one-cent and half-cent pieces made from copper, as well as silver dimes, quarters, half dollars, and dollar coins. In addition, the mint created silver half-dimes, an early precursor to today's nickel. The facility also minted gold coins, including two-and-a-half dollar pieces known as the "quarter eagle" ($2.50), five-dollar pieces known as the "half eagle" ($5.00), and ten-dollar pieces known simply as "the eagle" ($10.00). Rutgers historian Stephen Burciaga has written extensively about the history of the Philadelphia mint, from its origins to the present day. According to Burciaga: <blockquote>"Following the Revolutionary War, virtually all coins circulating in the United States were foreign. Because these coins reflected several dissimilar coinage systems, they could be difficult to use in everyday transactions. To create a simple, uniquely American coinage system, Congress passed the Coinage Act in 1792. This groundbreaking piece of legislation authorized the creation of a mint to manufacture coins representing American denominations (dollars and cents). The site chosen for this mint was Philadelphia, then the capital of the United States."</blockquote>In 1833, the Philadelphia mint moved to a larger facility at Juniper and Chestnut Streets. The output of new coins increased rapidly due to the introduction of steam-powered coin presses and improved methods for refining metal. During the 1830s and 1840s, the mint processed a large amount of the metal from the gold rushes in Georgia, North Carolina, and California, with the gold converted into coins for circulation. However, currency shortages occurred frequently. To solve this problem, the Philadelphia mint temporarily created currency in additional denominations, including silver three-cent pieces, bronze two-cent pieces, and gold three-dollar coins. Since transportation was so costly, additional U.S. Mint facilities were soon established in other parts of the country, although the Philadelphia location consistently remained the most productive. In 1901, the Philadelphia mint once again outgrew its old building and relocated to a new facility, this time at 1700 Spring Garden Street. As it was close to the machinery shops, U.S. Smelting Co., and Reading Railroad, the location was convenient for receiving raw materials and shipping new coins to other parts of the country by rail. The facility was the largest yet, comprising an entire city block. Yet by 1933, the Philadelphia mint halted gold coin production entirely, after the federal government decided to move away from the gold standard. Thereafter, people could no longer exchange paper currency for gold coins or bullion. During the early 1940s, amidst the added demands of World War II, the Philadelphia mint processed coins that contained lesser amounts of copper and nickel, as these metals were needed for the production of war materials and ammunition. One result was the "steel penny," which was minted in 1943. Two decades later, the federal government also decided to abandon the silver standard. Consequently, no new silver coins were minted after 1964. The existing silver currency became sought after by collectors for its historical value. In 1969, the Philadelphia mint again moved to a new building on Independence Mall, while its previous facility became the campus for the Community College of Philadelphia. The facility on Independence Mall remains the current home of the Philadelphia mint today. Along with producing large volumes of coins, the Philadelphia mint processes commemorative coins, medals, and bullion for collectors. In terms of output, the modern machinery is now able to produce one million coins in a twenty-four hour period. Other than pennies, any new coins produced at the Philadelphia mint have a "P" mintmark, which associates them with this facility. Since 1792, four separate buildings have housed the Philadelphia mint. As the nation expanded, so did the Philadelphia mint; each time it outgrew its former facility, a new and larger building was constructed. Overall, the U.S. Mint is a federal bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury, which operates U.S. Mint facilities in six different cities throughout the country. In addition to the Philadelphia mint, U.S. Mint facilities can be found in Denver, Colorado; San Francisco, California; Fort Knox, Kentucky; West Point, New York; and Washington, D.C.

The first U.S. Mint was established on April 2, 1792, after Congress passed the Coinage Act. In the colonial era before the Revolutionary War, monetary transactions were conducted using colonial currency, foreign coins, livestock, and produce. After the Revolutionary War, the Articles of Confederation granted states the authority to mint their own coins. When the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1788, planning began for the first mint, which would standardize the country's currency and help to forge a national identity. Philadelphia was chosen as the location of the first mint, as the city was capital of the new nation at that time. Not only was the "Philadelphia mint" the first federal building to be constructed under the new Constitution, but it was also the tallest building in Philadelphia up to that point. Over the centuries, each time the Philadelphia mint outgrew its building, a new facility was constructed to house its operations. In 1969, the most recent Philadelphia mint building was constructed in a Modernist style. It is the fourth building to house the U.S. Mint within this city, and half of the nation's coins are minted here. Overall, the U.S Mint includes six separate facilities located in various cities throughout the country.

An artist's rendering of the first U.S. Mint in Philadelphia. Titled, “Ye Olde Mint,”  this painting was created by Edwin Lamasure  and it was printed on a postcard between 1915-1925.

The Philadelphia Mint

As the oldest Historical Society in the State of Wyoming, the Sublette County Historical Society was originally established in 1935 for the preservation of historic sites of the fur trade and markings of settler graves to collect all records pertaining to the historical background of Sublette County. Today’s SCHS is the parent organization for the Museum of the Mountain Man. The Historical Society holds over 15,000 artifacts ranging from pre-historic to the settlement era. Founding members of the Historical Society began the modern-day rendezvous reenactment program in 1936 in Daniel to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1836 rendezvous, which was attended by the first white women to cross the Continental Divide. The Rendezvous Pageant is still performed every year in July by the Green River Rendezvous Pageant Association during Rendezvous Day in Pinedale.The personal mission of the Museum of the Mountain Man is to preserve and interpret the history of the Rocky Mountain Fur Trade. It also tells of the history of the mountain men who explored Pinedale and the region around it during the 19th century. The museum presents a visual and interpretative experience into the romantic era of the 1800s Mountain Man and provides a comprehensive overview of the Western Fur Trade’s historical significance. Situated in the heart of the county that was once the hub of the Rocky Mountain Rendezvous system, the Museum stands as a monument to the men and the commerce that opened the West. Artifacts directly traceable to the mountain men are extremely rare.The museum’s collection has many period-correct pieces from the fur-trade era. Genuine artifacts in the museum’s collection include a rifle owned by Jim Bridger after the fur trade era and archaeological pieces from the site of Fort Bonneville. Sublette County’s acquisition of the fur-trade papers significantly expands the museum’s authentic artifact collection and ability to interpret the Rocky Mountain fur-trade era. Each year, the Museum of the Mountain Man and the Sublette County Historical Society produce the “Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal” and other publications that educate and preserve the record of historical events and people across the country.

Founded in 1990, The Museum of the Mountain Man has been preserving and interpreting the history of the Rocky Mountain fur trade. It lets visitors explore exhibits based on the history of mountain menthol explores the region during the 19th century. It sits at the foot of the Wind River Mountains and the Continental Divide near the Green River. The museum offers exhibitions of objects, publications, tours, and research designed to engage the imagination of its visitors.

Museum signage. Credit: Museum of the Mountain Man

Museum of the Mountain Man

Institution

Built in 1813 under the supervision of superintendent David Shriver Jr., the Casselman Bridge was erected as part of the 620-mile Cumberland Road, which would later become part of the larger National Road, the first major federal highway, that connects the Potomac and Ohio Rivers. The bridge served as a major passageway across the Casselman River for early 19th century settlers and westward travelers, as well as pedestrians, stage coaches, wagons, motorized traffic, and livestock through its use 118 years of service. The Casselman Bridge extends 354 feet and spans 80 feet with a 30-foot-high arch, making it the largest bridge of its kind in the United States at the time of its construction. Construction began in late 1813, but was not fully completed until 1815 due to increased rains and other delays. The bridge features a single stone arch, constructed primarily of large stones and rubble, with large stone abutments on both ends. Maintenance of the bridge had to be performed throughout its history, most notably to accommodate for motorized traffic. The bridge remained in use until 1933 when a steel bridge was erected nearby as part of US Route 40. The bridge was then closed to vehicles in 1953, with additional maintenance being performed in later years. Restoration efforts included the repair of a large hole, as well as resetting some of the stones that had fallen out of place. The bridge was closed to motorized traffic in 1953 and subsequently restored through federal funding. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1963 in recognition for its contribution to U.S. heritage. It is now owned by the State of Maryland and preserved as part of the Casselman Bridge State Park. A historic marker is posted on both ends of the bridge and reads: "Erected 1813 by David Shriver, Jr., Sup't of the "Cumberland Road" (The National Road). This 80 foot span was the largest stone arch in America at the time. It was continuously used from 1813 to 1933."5

The Casselman Bridge, also known as the Casselman River Bridge, Old Casselman Bridge, Casselmans Bridge, Castleman's Bridge, and Little Crossings Bridge, is a stone arch bridge that was constructed in 1813-1815 as part of the National Road. The bridge served as a major passageway for westward travelers and frontiersman crossing the Casselman River. It is now preserved by the State of Maryland as a National Historic Landmark.

Casselman Bridge

The First Presbyterian
Church traces its origins back to June 1811, when the Rev. Robert Henderson
came to service the Presbyterian residents of what is now Murfreesboro. In
April 1812 the Presbyterian community formally established the Murfree Spring
Church; the name would change to the First Presbyterian Church, Murfreesboro in
1818. Originally congregants worshipped in a log structure on the property of
Colonel Hardy Murfree. Around 1820 the church’s first permanent sanctuary was
constructed on Vine Street. The brick building was said to be one of the
fanciest structures in Rutherford County at the time, and featured a five-story
bell tower. Members of the congregation were buried in a graveyard adjacent to
the church; in 1837 it expanded and evolved into a public burial ground, today
known as the Old City Cemetery. In August 1822 the church hosted a special
session of the Tennessee state general assembly. During this session the
assembly voted to endorse Andrew Jackson for the presidency. 

The church was hit hard
by the effects of the Civil War. The sanctuary served as a hospital for
Confederate soldiers during the Battle of Stones River, and afterwards was a
hospital for Union soldiers during the occupation of Murfreesboro. Troops also
set up camps in the area surrounding the church and cemetery. Sometime between
the winter of 1863 and the spring of 1864 the church building was demolished.
Details surrounding the circumstances behind its destruction are uncertain;
some reports claim that Union soldiers began taking bricks from the building to
make fireplaces for their shelters. Other accounts add that the soldiers
desecrated the cemetery as well, destroying tombstones. From 1862 until July
1864 it appears that the congregation did not assemble. Towards the end of the
war the church reemerged and in 1865 it filed a claim for damages from the
federal government; after years of efforts, the church was awarded $6,500 in
damages in 1899.

In 1867 the First
Presbyterian church purchased a lot on the corner of Spring and College Streets.
A new Gothic Revival style church building was constructed on the property and
designed by Nashville architect W. A. Kiddell. In 1913 the building was heavily
damaged by a tornado. Almost immediately the congregation moved to build a new
structure on the same spot, with construction completed by 1914. The new
building was constructed and possibly designed by the construction firm of
Maugans and Bell in the popular Classical Revival style. Additional sections were
built in 1959 and 1998. In 1993 the church was added to the National Register
of Historic Places on the grounds that it was an ideal example of Classical
Revival architecture. The First Presbyterian Church remains in operation and holds
regular services.

This historic Murfreesboro church dates back to 1812 when the congregation maintained a modest church edifice at what is now the Old City Cemetery. During the Civil War, that structure was occupied and eventually destroyed by Union troops. A new sanctuary was built at the church’s present location on North Spring Street in 1867. In 1913, that building was mostly destroyed by a tornado. The congregation responded by building this Classical Revival style structure on the same spot within less than a year. This 1914 church continues to serve the congregation and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

The current church building was constructed in 1914 after the previous structure was destroyed in a tornado in 1913. Image obtained from the Nashville Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. 

First Presbyterian Church of Murfreesboro

L.A. gold-mining millionaire&nbsp;Lewis L. Bradbury commissioned the building's construction. He hired architect&nbsp;Summer Hunt to design it&nbsp;and hired George Wyman to build it. This&nbsp;architectural landmark is noteworthy for its ornate iron railings, marble stairs, and elevators, which are especially well known both for being open-caged and for ascending 50 feet into the building’s skylights. And, although it is still a working building full of offices and tenants, tourists are allowed to enter and explore its lobby and landing area that sits on the stairway between the first and second floors.The building’s design was influenced by “Looking Backward,” Edward Bellamy’s 1887 science-fiction book about a utopian society. In keeping with the book, the Bradbury Building was designed to be "vast hall full of light, received not alone from the windows on all sides, but from the dome, the point of which was a hundred feet above ... The walls and ceiling were frescoed in mellow tints, calculated to soften without absorbing the light which flooded the interior." &nbsp;Though the building’s interior is decorative, its exterior is known for being undistinguished. Made in the Italian Renaissance Revival style that was popular back in the 1890s, its exterior is made up of brown brick, terracotta, and sandstone. Its front entrance has been likened by the Los Angeles Times’s David Ferrell to a “Parisian alley of arched windows” while it leads to a “awe-inspiring cathedral-like center court.” &nbsp;

Built in 1893, the Bradbury Building is one of the oldest buildings in downtown Los Angeles. Also, with its Victorian stylings, the building has starred in many movies including Blade Runner, Lethal Weapon 4, and Chinatown (1974). It was built at a cost of $500,000—three times its original budget—and restored and given a seismic retrofit for $7 million in 1991. It is both listed on the National Register of Historic Places (1971) and a National Historic Landmark (1977). There are only four such honored buildings in L.A. designated National Landmarks and the Bradbury is the oldest of the four.    

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