The statue was created in 1934.&nbsp;Sixty years after its installation in a remote area of Fairmount Park, the city relocated the&nbsp;All Wars Memorial&nbsp;to a much more visible site on the Parkway, as originally proposed.&nbsp; Full Text of plaque: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow">TO COMMEMORATE THE HEROISM AND SACRIFICE&nbsp; OF ALL COLORED SOLDIERS WHO SERVED IN THE&nbsp; VARIOUS WARS ENGAGED IN BY THE UNITED&nbsp; STATES OF AMERICA THAT A LASTING RECORD&nbsp; SHALL BE MADE OF THEIR UNSELFISH DEVOTION&nbsp; TO DUTY AS AN INSPIRATION TO FUTURE&nbsp; GENERATIONS THIS MONUMENT IS DEDICATED&nbsp; MAY 30TH, 1934</a>

The All Wars Memorial to Colored Soldiers and Sailors was created in 1934

More Info

Finely detailed sculptures of African American military men cluster about an allegorical figure representing Justice, who holds symbols of Honor and Reward. Above, American eagles surround a torch of life. First placed in West Fairmount Park, this work was moved to a prominent position on the Parkway in 1994.

All Wars Memorial to Colored Soldiers and Sailors

This driving tour includes stops at historic sites related to abolitionists and the Underground Railroad, the Civil War, and the long fight for equal rights throughout the 20th century. It also includes several museums and monuments, historic churches, and the location of ballparks that were home to Philadelphia's leading Negro League teams. The museum includes a stop at Philadelphia's African American Museum and the John Coltrane House.

Driving Tour of African American History in Philadelphia

This tour starts at the Philadelphia's City Hall, Masonic Temple, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and includes some of the city's most famous landmarks, cultural institutions, and works of art. Highlights of the tour include the Franklin Institute, one of the first monuments dedicated to African American soldiers, the Rodin Museum, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and Lemon Hill Mansion. 

Philadelphia City Hall to the Museum of Art

This heritage trail begins on Philadelphia's Lombard Street with historical markers and homes that commemorate the lives of businessman Jacob C. White and writer Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. The tour moves north through the city and includes numerous landmarks, sculptures, historic churches, and several museums and institutions dedicated to preserving and sharing African American history.

African American History of Philadelphia Heritage Trail

Admin

When Pennsylvania's founder, William Penn, designed the city of Philadelphia in 1681, he set aside five parcels of land public spaces, including what he called Centre Square. The square would be the site of public buildings, including city hall. It took roughly two hundred years for Penn's vision to come to fruition.  Philadelphia's original City Hall was located at 2nd and Market Streets. When the Independence Hall complex was completed, the building was moved to 5th and Chestnut Streets.The decision to build a new city hall was also based on the changing nature of the city. The city and county were consolidated in 1854, doubling the population of Philadelphia. Old City Hall, a modest, two-story building, could no longer meet the needs of the growing city, and in 1871, the current location was chosen by popular vote. Philadelphia has a long history as one of the nation's most important cities. In the late 1800s, the city had aspirations of once again becoming America's most important urban area, and when construction of City Hall began, no expense was spared. Planners wanted a grand building to reflect the city's status. It was built in the French Second Empire style, which was popular at the time. It was a massive undertaking--the building has 14.5 acres of floor space and almost 700 rooms. More than 88 million bricks were used in the construction and the granite base of the tower has walls that are 22 feet thick in places. Construction of the building stretched into the next century, eventually taking thirty years and reaching a cost of almost $25 million. The building's designers intended that it would be the tallest in the world, but the slow pace of construction meant that it had been surpassed by the Eiffel Tower and the Washington Monument when it was complete. With the addition of the 37-foot statue of William Penn at the top, however, it was--for a time--the tallest occupied building in the world. It remained the tallest building in Philadelphia until 1987 when One Liberty Place took the title. The remarkable structure can still claim to be the largest municipal building in the United States, however, with more rooms than the US Capitol. City Hall is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is also a National Historic Landmark.  Connection to MOVE Bombing:Throughout the late 1970s and 1980s, the city of Philadelphia continually were forced to confront the MOVE organization for several offenses over the years. These offenses ranged from weapons violations, noise complaints from neighbors, and armed standoffs. In 1977, leading Philadelphia official, Mayor Frank Rizzo, obtained a court order that required the MOVE members to vacate the premises of their Powelton Village house at 311 North 33rd Street. This was after numerous complaints from neighbors about the disruptive life style of the MOVE organization. The following year, city officials were caught in an armed standoff with MOVE after the group failed to leave the home. This confrontation led to the death of Philadelphia Police Department officer James J. Ramp. The 9 MOVE members in the home would be charged for their collective responsibility for his death following their surrender. By 1981, MOVE relocated to the Cobbs Creek neighborhood in Philadelphia. The group turned their new home at 6221 Osage Avenue in a battle ready compound; prepared with boarded up windows and a fortified bunker MOVE built on the roof of the house. City officials, Mayor Wilson Goode and Police Commissioner Gregore J. Sambor, classified MOVE as a terrorist organization. In 1985, arrest warrants were obtained by police that charged 4 of the MOVE members with parole violations, contempt of court, illegal possession of firearms, and making terrorist threats. While the MOVE bombing was nowhere near Philadelphia's City Hall, the decisions and actions of the leading officials, particularly those of Mayor Wilson Goode, caused a tragically devastating event that could have been handled with numerous different approaches. On May 13,1985, almost five hundred police officers attempted to clear the building and execute the arrest warrants. Police Commissioner Sambor with a speech addressing the MOVE members that began, "Attention MOVE: This is America. You have to abide by the laws of the United States." MOVE did not respond, so the police decided to forcefully remove the members. During the armed standoff that followed, tear gas canisters were thrown at the building while both MOVE and PPD fired at each other. Police shot over ten thousand rounds of ammunition before Police Commissioner Sambor ordered for the compound to be bombed using two one-pound bombs made of FBI-supplied Tovex, a dynamite substitution. The explosion created a fire that destroyed 65 surrounding homes. The city officials withheld firefighters when the fire first began to grow and spread. Officials believed MOVE members would shoot at the firefighters. By the time firefighters were given the clear, it was too late for most of the buildings on the block.

Philadelphia's iconic City Hall building is the largest municipal building in the United States and took thirty years to complete. For many years, this was the tallest building in the city until the completion of One Liberty Place in 1987. This impressive building replaced a previous city hall which was located at 5th and Chesnut until 1871. With granite that is 22 feet thick in some places, no expense was spared in the building's construction which continued in phases until 1901. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as well as a national survey of the 150 most significant buildings in the United States.

Philadelphia City Hall

In an attempt to build a base of operations in the city of Philadelphia, the order of Free Masons bought a plot of land in the city on July 1, 1867. Once the land was purchased, a contest was held to decide who would serve as the architect for the Temple, and James Windrim, a 27-year-old Mason, won. The next year, on June 24, 1868, the granite cornerstone of the building was laid, and construction could begin on the Temple. On September 26, 1873, the Temple was completed, and its completion was celebrated with a grand Masonic parade.



The architectural design of the Temple comes from centuries of design history. Some areas the Temple borrow architectural design from are Egypt, Assyria, Athens, Rome, Jerusalem, the Temple of the Dioscuri, the Temple of Vesta, and the Roslyn Chapel. Today, the Temple receives many visitors to marvel at its design, and it is still used for different Masonic meetings and practices.

A National Historic Landmark, the Masonic Temple in Philadelphia is one of the most architecturally significant Free Mason buildings in existence. The building was constructed in 1873 and attracts thousands of visitors to tour the building inspired by multiple centuries of historically significant events that have occurred here. The Temple is still in use today as the main headquarters of the Pennsylvania branch of the Masonic Great Lodge.

Masonic Temple (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Soon after
its founding, the academy had no permanent home and held exhibitions in a
building of the Ionic Order that was built in 1806 and existed at the site of
the American Theater at Chestnut and 10th Streets.&nbsp; Its first art museum opened there in 1807 and
its first exhibition took place in 1811, which included over 500 sculptures and
paintings.&nbsp; Unfortunately, the building
was severely damaged by fire in 1845.&nbsp; By
1868, the academy was looking for a new home and raised enough funds to
construct one at its current location, which was built between 1871 and
1876.&nbsp; Furness and Hewitt melded elements
of Second Empire and Renaissance and Gothic revival within the building.&nbsp; Initially praised, it fell out of favor in
the early 20th century and was criticized as too ornate and complicated.
&nbsp;It is now recognized as a Philadelphia masterpiece
and one of Furness’s finest works.

The academy
gained prominence when it hired alumni, Thomas Eakins, to teach there in
1876.&nbsp; He ascended to the academy’s
directorship in 1882 and altered its curriculum to allow for more independent
study which gave its students greater artistic freedom.&nbsp; The academy was also progressive in that it
began to offer training to women beginning in 1844.&nbsp; Women of this era had few opportunities to
study and learn artistic techniques in a formal, educational setting.&nbsp; The academy continued to expand those
opportunities by opening classes to women in 1860 and they eventually attained
leadership positions after 1868, hiring its first female instructor, Catherine
Drinker, in 1878.&nbsp; 

From
1811-1969 the academy held annual exhibitions from which it acquired many of
its current works, and its acquisitions and exhibition programs are still
transforming and adding to its collection. The museum’s exhibitions are no
longer only held on an annual basis, but are ongoing throughout the year and
feature one every year that displays the works of current students.&nbsp; Past exhibitions have included, “Happiness,
Liberty and Life?&nbsp; American Art and
Politics,” as well as “World War I and American Art.”&nbsp; As for its collection, it features artists
such as Cecilia Beaux, Winslow Homer, Edmund Tarbull and members of The Eight,
to include devotees of the Ashcan School, Robert Henri and John Sloan.&nbsp; Its modern and contemporary collection
features works by Jennifer Bartlett, Alex Katz, and Frank Stella, among others.

In 2002, the
academy purchased the adjacent property at 128 N. Broad.&nbsp; It is now the Samuel M. V. Hamilton
Building.&nbsp; It moved its School of Fine
Arts at the Academy there in 2006.&nbsp; The
Hamilton Building is also home to the Fisher Brooks Gallery and Portfolio, the
museum’s gift shop.&nbsp;

The venerable Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts was founded in 1805 by painter Charles Wilson Peale, sculptor William Rush and other artists and business leaders.  Its current home, designed by American architects Frank Furness and George Hewitt, was completed in 1876.  The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975.  In addition to the academy’s school, it also houses its art museum that displays both historic and contemporary works from the 1760s through the present.  

Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts

The
meetinghouse has served as the home to the Hicksite Sect of the Society of
Friends since 1856.&nbsp; They have been in
the Cherry Street area since they broke from the Arch Street Meeting house back
in 1827 over ideological differences.&nbsp;
That original Cherry Street meetinghouse no longer stands. However, the “Hicksites”
as they were called, finally reconciled with the “orthodox” Quakers of Arch
Street in 1955.

The house was
originally divided into two meeting rooms as Quaker business meeting were
segregated by gender until 1926.&nbsp; The
south meeting room was then used for social gatherings and serves that function
to this day.&nbsp; Both rooms are surrounded
by balconies, or “youth galleries” on three sides.&nbsp; The meetinghouse is now part of the larger
Friends Center Campus that includes national offices and the Greater
Philadelphia Chapter of the United Nations Association.&nbsp; The campus was completely renovated in 2009
and designated a LEED Platinum site that is fossil-fuel free and produces zero
carbon emissions.&nbsp; The modern addition now houses the offices of many non-profit organizations.&nbsp; 

The
meetinghouse gained its National Historic Landmark status due largely to the
role women played in promoting and spreading various social movements beyond
its boundaries.&nbsp; To that end, the Friends
have added a statue of Quaker martyr, Mary Dyer, who was hung in Boston in 1660
in an attempt to overturn anti-Quaker laws adopted by the colony.&nbsp; Dyer represents a long tradition of female
activism within the Society of Friends.&nbsp;
Long before other religious denominations, the Quakers promoted female
equality and women played key roles in the affairs of the church.&nbsp; They were, from the beginning, allowed to
contribute during meetings and worship services on equal footing with men, and
were ordained as Quaker ministers.&nbsp; These
policies proved to many Quaker and non-Quaker women that they could also
contribute to the larger society outside the confines of the meetinghouse.

One such
woman was Lucretia Mott, who was quite active at the Race Street Meetinghouse
and eventually became an ordained minister.&nbsp;
She spoke and preached there on numerous occasions and went on to become
a leading member of the abolitionist and women’s rights movements.&nbsp; She travelled to and spoke at various other
meetinghouses, was a collaborator with William Lloyd Garrison, founded the
Female Anti-Slavery Society and spoke at the Seneca Falls Convention on Women’s
Rights in 1848.&nbsp; She was active until her
death in 1880.&nbsp; &nbsp;

The Race Street Friends Meetinghouse, which was built in 1856, now, ironically, fronts Cherry Street.  The site has been in continuous use by the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers, for over 150 years.  The site was converted into the Friends Meeting Center when a modern addition was built in 1975 while still maintaining the integrity of the original meetinghouse.  The meetinghouse played a significant role in the social movements of both the 19th and 20th centuries, to include the abolition, women’s rights, temperance, peace and civil rights movements.  And, not surprisingly to the Quakers, women, such as Lucretia Mott, Hannah Clothier Hull, Alice Paul and Jane Rushmore, who were associated with Race Street, led the way.  Group tours are available by appointment and it was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1993.

Race Street Friends Meetinghouse

"I wanted to 
create a sculpture almost anyone, regardless of their background, could 
look at and instantly recognize that it is about the idea of struggling 
to break free. This sculpture is about the struggle for achievement of 
freedom through the creative process." - Zenos Frudakis 






Freedom is 20ft long and 8ft high, weighs in at 7000 pounds,
and was cast in bronze. Frudakis has said he was inspired by Rodin’s Gates of
Hell,&nbsp;and sought to incorporate a myriad of
sculptures that would comprise Freedom as a whole. The face speaking the words “Freedom”
from which the sculpture’s name is derived, is a mirrored reflection of the
artists own face. Similarly, a casting of Frudakis’ hands can also be found
within Freedom and were provided by artist Duane Hanson. 

Frudakis has stated that “Although there are four figures
represented, the work is really one figure moving from left to right. The
composition develops from left to right beginning with a kind of mummy/death
like captive figure locked into its background. In the second frame, the
figure, reminiscent of&nbsp;Michelangelo's&nbsp;Rebellious Slave,
begins to stir and struggle to escape. The figure in the third frame has torn
himself from the wall that held him captive and is stepping out, reaching for
freedom. In the fourth frame, the figure is entirely free, victorious, arms
outstretched, completely away from the wall and from the grave space he left
behind. He evokes an escape from his own mortality.”&nbsp;

﻿"Freedom" By artist Zenos Frudakis, is a Philadelphia based public art display housed on the side of the former GlaxoSmithKline building in Philadelphia. Erected in 2001, the work showcases the figure of a man in four transformative movements that represent his journey from bondage to freedom. Frudakis' sculpture was commissioned by Francesca Shaughnessy, a former psychologist with the Philadelphia School District, and was dedicated in October of the same year. 

"Freedom," by Zenos Frudakis

In the center of Logan Square is The Swann Memorial Fountain, also known as The Fountain of the Three Rivers, which features a central geyser that gushes more than 50 feet high.&nbsp;Three bronze Native Americans recline among soaring jets of water.&nbsp;The fountain was designed by architect Wilson Eyre, Jr., who collaborated with sculptor Alexander Stirling Calder. He is the second of three generations of Calders whose sculpture can be found in Philadelphia. Calder’s father, Alexander Milne Calder, designed the statue of William Penn atop city Hall. His son, Alexander “Sandy” Calder, was famous for his modernist mobiles, one of which is on the Penn campus right outside Meyerson Hall.&nbsp;The Swann Memorial Fountain was built in memory of Dr. Wilson Cary Swann, the founder and president of the Philadelphia Fountain Society, which provided sources of fresh drinking water throughout the city. Calder titled his sculptural ensemble&nbsp;“The Fountain of Three Rivers”&nbsp;and adapted the time-honored allegorical motif of a reclining nude river god to the region's geography and Native American history. The three figures at the center of Swann Fountain represent the three rivers of Philadelphia: the Delaware River - represented by powerful male figure reaching above his head to grasp his bow as a large pike sprays water over him, the Schuylkill River–represented by mature woman holding the neck of a swan, and the Wissahickon River – represented by young girl leaning on her side against an agitated.When Philadelphians gathered the day after the fountain’s opening, on July 24, 1924, it was one of the hottest days of that year. These gatherings were customary at the time — from 1921 to 1924, thousands of residents gathered weekly during the summers for an evening of what were called “open-air dances.” Despite the sweltering heat, Philadelphians would come together in the streets surrounding Logan Circle, dancing the tango to the music of the police band. An Evening of Tango at the Swann Memorial Fountain seeks to reimagine this wonderful Philadelphia pastime of a bygone era.The Swann Fountain is just one piece in Philadelphia’s remarkable collection of outdoor art, which also includes the LOVE statue and Oldenburg’s giant clothespin just west of City Hall. Philadelphia has more public art than any city in the country, with the greatest number of outdoor sculptures and public murals in the U.S.

The magnificent Swann Memorial Fountain (1924) was created by Alexander Stirling Calder, as a tribute to Dr. Wilson Cary Swann, founder of the Philadelphia Fountain Society.  The fountain sculpture consists of three large Native American figures symbolizing the area's major bodies of water. The young girl leaning on her side against an agitated swan represents the Wissahickon Creek, the mature woman holding the neck of a swan symbolizes the Schuylkill River, and the male figure reaching above his head to grasp his bow ‐ the Delaware River. The fountain is located at Logan Square, Benjamin Franklin Parkway at 19th Street. 

Swann Memorial Fountain

The idea for&nbsp;Aero Memorial&nbsp;was conceived by the Aero Club of Pennsylvania, which donated modest funds for the purpose to Fairmount Park Art Association (now the Association for Public Art) in 1917. Fundraising took many years and the work did not begin until 1939, when the Art Association contacted Manship. The idea of a celestial sphere was finally approved in 1944. Manship had already executed a number of similar spheres, including one for the Woodrow Wilson Memorial at the League of Nations in Geneva.

To commemorate aviators who died in World War I, sculptor Paul Manship created an open bronze sphere that suggests the heavens and the earth, with intricate intertwined forms evoking the signs of the zodiac. he artist Paul Manship was a leading figure in American sculpture for several decades. Profoundly influenced by classical Roman and archaic Greek Art, he received many major sculpture awards in the United States and abroad, and his famous Prometheus dominates Rockefeller Center in New York.

Aero Memorial

Created for “The
encouragement and cultivation of the sciences and the advancement of useful
learning.”&nbsp; the Academy of Natural Sciences
of Philadelphia grew quickly after its founding in 1812.&nbsp; Its founders sought to gather together fellow
naturalists from the area to expand the scope and credibility of American
science.&nbsp; It was modeled after natural
science societies of Europe and was incorporated by the Pennsylvania
legislature in 1817.&nbsp; By 1820 it was the
leading natural science academy within the U.S. and it opened its doors to the
public in 1828.&nbsp; Its earliest members
included the likes of Titian Peale, Charles Pickering and Thomas Jefferson who
was a corresponding member.&nbsp; It later came
to include John Audubon, Thomas Henry Huxley and Charles Darwin (another
corresponding member) among its members.

As it as
grown, so too as its research departments and vast collections.&nbsp; It conducts research in the fields of botany,
entomology, and vertebrate paleontology among others.&nbsp; Its Patrick Center for Environmental Research,
founded in 1948, is involved with biogeochemistry, fisheries, and
phycology.&nbsp; The academy’s groundbreaking
Center for Systematics and Evolution studies the diversification of living
forms and the relationships they develop over time. &nbsp;&nbsp;

As for the
academy’s public half, its collection of specimens has grown to over 17 million
while its library and archives contains hundreds of thousands of journals,
volumes, illustrations, and photographs.&nbsp;
The academy’s museum is perhaps best known for its Dinosaur Hall whose
star attraction is a full-size, 42-foot, Tyrannosaurs Rex.&nbsp; The hall also features over 30 other species,
of which half are full skeletal mounts, as well as dinosaur eggs, footprints,
and murals.&nbsp; It also permits children of
various ages to become archaeologists in its Big and Little Digs area.

Other
permanent exhibits include its tropical butterfly garden, which contains 20-40
different species at any one time; and its 37 dioramas, most of which were built
between the 1930s and 50s and are divided into North American and African and
Asian Halls.&nbsp; The academy also contains
exhibits devoted to mollusks and its unique What Eats What that examines the
food chain and energy flow of a small stream.&nbsp;
Its Library Gallery always has on display its double-elephant-sized,
original copy of John Audubon’s The Birds
of America.&nbsp; And its We Wrote the Book
exhibit rotates many of its more famous volumes written by prominent academy
members.&nbsp; The academy also hosts rotating
exhibits and past ones have included Dinosaurs Unearthed, Treasures from the
Mineral Vault, and Frogs: A Chorus of Colors. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

The academy was previously known as the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia until 2011, when it became affiliated with Drexel University.  It was founded by leading Philadelphia naturalists in 1812 and is the oldest natural science and research institution in the Western Hemisphere.  It has been in continuous operation for well over 200 years and its current home, located just across the street from Logan Square, was built in 1876.  It is now divided into a public natural history museum and world-class research facility.

Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

The Franklin Institute was originally founded in 1824 by
Samuel Merrick and William H. Keating as the Franklin Institute of the State of
Pennsylvania for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts. In conjunction with the
movement to enact educational reform in America and to help the nation progress
through technology, the Institute was opened as a center to honor the memory of
Benjamin Franklin and to continue to develop his inventions in innovative ways.
The Institute, for its first century after its founding, served this purpose by
providing classes in mechanics, engineering, and drafting in order to help
bring science and invention into the forefront of those attending.
Additionally, the Institute housed numerous technological exhibitions in this
span of time.



The Institute shifted gears in 1930, attempting to raise
money in order to expand and build a memorial hall and a science museum.
Despite the financial toll the Great Depression had on the United States, the
Institute raised $5.1 million, which allowed them to begin construction for the
planned expansions. In New Year’s Day of 1934, the Franklin Institute opened
itself to the public as a museum of science, allowing its patrons hands-on
experiences that allowed them to learn about the world around them. Over time,
the Institute continued to expand, adding to itself the Tuttleman IMAX Theater,
and the Fels Planetarium, one of the oldest planetariums in this hemisphere.
Additionally, the Institute houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial in
honor to its titular scientist and Founding Father.



Today, the Franklin Institute still works to serve the
community by providing hands-on scientific learning experiences for those who
walk through its doors. In it, visitors may find exhibits on such topics as King
Tut, neuroscience, traveling exhibitions, and other world-class exhibits. In
addition to serving as a memorial and a museum, however, the Franklin Institute
provides grants to researchers it deems worthy, and also publishes scientific
papers to further research and knowledge within the scientific community.

Founded in 1824 as the Franklin Institute of the State of Pennsylvania for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, the Franklin Institute is one of the oldest centers dedicated to science education and progress in the United States. In the Institute’s founding days, it offered classes on mechanics, engineering, and other such fields of scientific study in order to broaden people’s understanding of and engagement in the sciences. After a century of activity, the Institute became a museum in 1934 in order to expand its vision of promoting the sciences. Today, the Institute still serves that goal as a museum, reaching out to those who wish to learn through exploring exhibits, attending classes, and much more. Additionally, one may find in the museum’s rotunda the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial, which sports a 20-foot-tall marble statue of the scientist and Founding Father.

The Franklin Institute

In the early 1900s, wealthy chemist Albert C. Barnes began
studying and collecting works of art for his own personal collection. Some of
the works he obtained for himself included the likes of Renoir and Picasso, and
he worked to get the best of those works that he could. In 1922, however,
Barnes decided to transform his personal collection into the Barnes Foundation,
a center for education in Merion, Pennsylvania. It was not completely open to
the public, however; visitors were allowed into the Foundation, but they were
not nearly as important as Barnes’ intended guests: students.

Barnes’ vision for the Foundation was to be an educational
facility on art for students of all ages. In order to foster this vision,
Barnes wrote up a will that was primarily about how the Foundation was to be
preserved after his death. These main conditions included restrictions on
public admission in order to keep the Foundation as close to a learning facility
for students as possible, and also prohibited the loaning of, reproductions of,
touring of, or exhibitions of the Foundation’s collection. Above all else, the
Foundation was to continue to bring education to those students willing to
attend, and the collection was to be kept in the same location as it was
originally founded. Barnes kept his vision of the Foundation alive until his
death in 1951.

In the decades after Barnes’ death, his conditions were
slowly broken, apparently in the best interests of the Foundation. Public
access was allowed more frequently, parts of the collection were sent on world
tours to raise money for the Foundation, and, perhaps the most controversial of
these moves, the Barnes Foundation was moved from its original building in
Merion to a new location in Central City, Philadelphia. Although many were
opposed to the move, and many legal battles were brought up concerning the
future of the Foundation, it was ultimately given a new location, despite
Barnes’ initial vision. Today, the Barnes Foundation still holds a great
collection of artistic works and is open to the public.

The Barnes Foundation was established by Albert C. Barnes in 1922 to “promote the advancement of education and the appreciation of the fine arts and horticulture.” Originally located in Merion, Pennsylvania, the Barnes Foundation now resides in the heart of Philadelphia. The Foundation holds one of the finest collections of Post-Impressionist and early Modern paintings, with extensive works by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cézanne, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Henri Rousseau, Amedeo Modigliani, Chaim Soutine and Giorgio de Chirico, as well as American masters Charles Demuth, William Glackens, Horace Pippin and Maurice Prendergast. In addition, the Barnes houses a number of artistic works in different media, such as Old Master paintings, important examples of African sculpture and Native American ceramics, jewelry and textiles, American paintings and decorative arts and antiquities from the Mediterranean region and Asia.

Barnes Foundation

In the 1920s the City of Philadelphia was in the midst of creating the Benjamin Franklin Parkway as a great civic space. The Free Library of Philadelphia opened its central Logan Square location in 1927, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art's main building was opened to the public the following year. Nestled between these two public destinations on the Parkway, the intimately scaled Rodin Museum opened in November 1929. A unique ensemble of Beaux-Arts architecture and a formal French garden in which to experience the sculpture of Auguste Rodin, the Museum was designed by French architect Paul Cret (1876–1945) and French landscape designer Jacques Gréber (1882–1962). Its founder, the entrepreneur and philanthropist Jules E. Mastbaum, gave the Museum to his native city as a gift and it was immediately embraced and celebrated, drawing over 390,000 visitors in its first year. Today, it is one of the defining icons of the city, housing one of the most comprehensive public collections of work outside Paris by one of the world's most renowned sculptors.Since 1929, the Philadelphia Museum of Art has administered the Rodin Museum and its collection. Over the years, several large sculptures originally installed outdoors were taken inside to protect them from the elements, and the original plantings became overgrown. The building, its galleries, and its grounds have been renovated to restore the Museum to its original vision, and new conservation treatments have made it possible to return sculptures to their intended places in the garden. The Museum has reopened with an inaugural installation dedicated to&nbsp;The Gates of Hell, the defining project of Rodin's career and one that consumed him for almost four decades.An important part of visiting the Rodin Museum is experiencing the garden, which recently underwent a three-year rejuvenation effort supported by the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the City of Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation, and generous public and private funders. The project was conceived and overseen by the landscape architecture firm OLIN and follows the spirit of the original plans by Cret and Gréber. The inaugural installation of the restored Rodin Museum includes nearly thirty works focusing on the towering bronze doors inspired by&nbsp;Dante's Divine Comedy&nbsp;that have occupied the building's portico since 1929. In 1880 Rodin received a commission to create&nbsp;The Gates of Hell&nbsp;for a new decorative arts museum that was going to be built in Paris. Though the museum was never realized,&nbsp;The Gates&nbsp;became the seminal work of Rodin's career and a key to understanding his artistic aims. Left in plaster at Rodin's death in 1917, the first bronze casts of&nbsp;The Gates of Hellwere made for Jules Mastbaum, the founder of the Rodin Museum; one appears here and the second was given to the Musée Rodin in Paris.Some of Rodin's most famous works were originally conceived as part of&nbsp;The Gates&nbsp;and were only later removed, enlarged, and cast as independent works.&nbsp;The Thinker&nbsp;evolved from the focal point atop&nbsp;The Gates&nbsp;into a freestanding sculpture. Though the monumental-sized Thinker maintains its prominent place in the garden, a smaller version can be seen in this gallery. Also on view is Copy of Rodin's&nbsp;"The Kiss", a marble depicting doomed lovers Paolo and Francesca, who reside in the second circle of hell in The Divine Comedy. Created especially for the Museum by sculptor Henri Gréber (French, 1855–1941),&nbsp;Copy of Rodin's "The Kiss"&nbsp;suits the main gallery of the Rodin Museum exceptionally well and demonstrates Jules Mastbaum's vision for the Museum as a place where the breadth of Rodin's work could become more widely known and appreciated.

With over 140 bronzes, marbles, and plasters, the distinguished collection housed in the Rodin Museum represents every phase of Auguste Rodin's career. Open to the public in 1929, this remarkable ensemble of architecture, landscape, and sculpture, designed by architect Paul Cret and landscape architect Jacques Gréber, is now restored to its original splendor. The museum and grounds offer a unique ensemble of Beaux-Arts architecture and a formal French garden in which to experience the sculpture of Auguste Rodin.

Rodin Museum

Seated on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, directly in front
of the majestic main building of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Eakins Oval is
named for famed Philadelphia painter Thomas Eakins (1844-1916). He attended the
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and later went to Jefferson Medical College
to study anatomy. He taught anatomy and painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of
Fine Arts. During the time of the Parkway's construction, Eakins was
considered a controversial artist because of his style of realism. Perhaps best
known for his masterpiece,&nbsp;The Gross Clinic,&nbsp;Eakins' namesake
plaza features three fountains, the centerpiece being a sculpture dedicated to
George Washington.&nbsp;The four figures and the animals overlooking the pools
at the base represent four great waterways of America — the Mississippi, the
Potomac, the Delaware and the Hudson. The physical design and roadway configuration of Eakins Oval
has changed significantly since the original Gréber design. The Oval was
originally a true oval with tight radii that slowed traffic and maintained a
symmetrical plan. In 1957, the “Traffic Plan for the 37 CBD” was published by
Wilbur Smith &amp; Associates and provided the basis for the design of Eakins
Oval as it is known today. By stretching the oval and smoothing curves, the new
design essentially became a high-speed traffic circle whose byproduct was a
disorganized public space with a surface parking lot in the center. 





Since 2013 “The Oval”, a park with community
programing, events and activities was founded at Eakins Oval -&nbsp;at the center of the Ben Franklin Parkway.The Oval is a seasonal pop-up outdoor public
space that transforms an island of asphalt and surrounding lawns at 24th Street
and the Parkway into an eight-acre public space devoted to family-friendly fun.
Located within walking distance from Parkway’s cultural attractions, including
the Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Barnes Foundation and The Franklin
Institute, the Oval is a pedestrian friendly urban oasis.

Eakins Oval is a traffic circle in Philadelphia. It forms the northwest end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway just in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, with a central array of fountains and monuments, and a network of pedestrian walkways. Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, in partnership with the Fairmount Park Conservancy, revealed the City of Philadelphia’s new “Park on the Parkway” in July 2013. The eight acres of public space located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway known as Philadelphia’s own “Avenue des Champs-Élysées,” Eakins Oval (2451 Benjamin Franklin Parkway) became The Oval, a park with community programming, events and activities.

Eakins Oval

Beginning with the Oscar winning film Rocky in 1976, the
steps became widely known as The Rocky Steps after they played a significant
role in a popular Philadelphia-based six-movie series. In a now-legendary scene
from the first Rocky film, the title character, Rocky Balboa (played by Sylvester
Stallone), finishes a grueling training run by ascending &nbsp;the steps’ daunting heights and exulting at
the top, arms raised triumphantly, to the tune of “Gonna Fly Now”. The Rocky
steps appeared in a four of five sequels. 

Before Rocky III, released in 1982, Stallone commissioned A.
Thomas Schomberg to create a bronze statue of Rocky. After filming for the
movie completed, Stallone donated the statue to the City of Philadelphia. The
statue is located at the bottom of the outside stairs at the Philadelphia
Museum of Art—the famous steps Stallone was filmed running up and down. Gaze at
the vista of the city from the majestic building. 

Rocky was the first sports film to win an Academy Award for
Best Picture. In 2006 it was ranked fourth on the American Film Institute’s 100
Most Inspiring Movies of All Times.&nbsp;

The 72 stone steps before the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania have become known as the "Rocky Steps" as a result of their appearance in the triple-Oscar-winning film Rocky and four of its sequels, Rocky II, III, V and Rocky Balboa, in which the eponymous character runs up the steps to the song "Gonna Fly Now". The statue of Philly boxer Rocky Balboa is located at the bottom of the stairs, and was created by A. Thomas Schomberg in1980. The Rocky Statue and the “Rocky Steps” are two of the most popular attractions in Philadelphia. 

The Rocky Statue and Steps

Joan of Arc was&nbsp;a peasant girl living in medieval France. She believed she could save her country, France,&nbsp;from the English
conquerors during the Hundred Years' War. With no military training and acting
under divine guidance, Joan secured the confidence of Dauphin (later King
Charles VII) and led the French army in a momentous victory at Orleans in 1429.
After seeing the prince crowned (King Charles VII), she was captured by the
English and their French collaborators, tried for witchcraft and
heresy, and burned at the stake in 1431, at the age of 19. The Maid of Orléans (as she was known) had long
been considered national heroine and an enduring symbol of French unity and
nationalism. On May 16th, 1920 she was canonized by Pope Benedict XV.

The original statue of Joan of Arc for Paris was
commissioned in 1874 by Napoleon III,&nbsp;intended to help
in re-establishing&nbsp;French confidence after the humiliating military defeat of 1870 by
the Prussian army. Emmanuel Frémiet, French sculptor, had earned a reputation
for his work incorporating human and animal motifs in the neo-realistic manner.
To develop the memorial to the French heroine, Frémiet studied the design of
fifteenth-century French armor and dress in order to convey the figure within
her historical context. The statue was installed at the place where Joan was
wounded, Place des Pyramides in Paris. 

In 1889, when the members of the French community in
Philadelphia wanted to commemorate their centennial, they arranged to purchase
a cast of the original, Place des Pyramides Joan of Arc statue from the artist.
They made a contract with the artist that there would be only three cast of
this sculpture: the one in Place des Pyramides, the one in Philadelphia, and
another one in France in the town of Nancy. The Philadelphia sculpture was
purchased with the help of the Fairmount Park Art Association and was first installed
on the eastern approach to the Girard Avenue Bridge Bridge on the Schuykill
River. The original dedication took place on November 15, 1890. In 1959 the
sculpture was gilded and moved to its present location near the Philadelphia
Museum of Art by the Fairmount Park Art Association. In 2009, it was removed to repair a crack and
re-gilded and returned to its current spot in 2010. &nbsp;

Joan of Arc Statue is a gilded bronze equestrian sculpture of Joan of Arc by Emmanuel Frémiet. Bought by the Fairmount Park Art Association in 1890, the monument was at first placed at the east end of the Girard Avenue Bridge. Unappreciated at that location, it was moved to its present one in 1959, after being given its gilt coat in the basement of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
The sculpture represents Joan of Arc, a heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint,  astride a horse. Her proper right hand is raised and she holds up a flag in her proper right hand. In her proper left hand she holds the reins. She is crowned with a laurel wreath and clothed in armor. A sword hangs by her proper left side. The horse is walking with its front, proper left and rear, proper right hooves raised.

Joan of Arc Statue

<div>The Museum began as a legacy of the great Centennial Exhibition of 1876, held in Fairmount Park. At the conclusion of the celebrations, Memorial Hall--which had been constructed as the Exhibition's art gallery-- remained open as a Museum of Art and Industry "for the improvement and enjoyment of the people of the Commonwealth".</div><div>In the first few decades, the collections consisted of objects of an industrial nature, as well as fine and decorative art objects such as European ceramics. Books were also among the Museum's earliest acquisitions, as were antique furniture, enamels, carved ivories, jewelry, metalwork, glass, pottery, porcelain, textiles, and paintings. </div><div>In the early 1900s, the Museum published its first collection handbook and initiated an Education program for the general public. It wasn't long before a Membership program was in place, and plans for a new building gained momentum in the following decade.</div><div>Director Fiske Kimball set the tone for a new era in the 1920s, and the opening of the new building on Fairmount--what is now the Main Building--opened with an attendance record of one million visitors in its first year. Valiant marketing efforts and the skillful leadership of President J. Stogdell Stokes helped to keep the Museum vital during the Great Depression of the 1930s, while the 1940s witnessed extraordinary growth in the collections with a number of important gifts--including the John D. McIlhenny Collection and the George Grey Barnard Collection. </div><div>Acquisitions of the 1950s, such as the Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection and the A.E. Gallatin Collection, assured the Museum's prominence as a place in which to see masterpieces of early modern art. A number of period rooms were opened to the public as well, and the decade even saw the gift of Grace Kelly's wedding dress following her royal 1956 wedding to Prince Rainier III of Monaco. </div><div>Conservation of objects and the renovation of the building were themes of the 1960s, with major gifts including The Mr. and Mrs. Carroll S. Tyson, Jr. Collection, The Samuel S. White III and Vera White Collection, 71 objects from designer Elsa Schiaparelli, and Marcel Duchamp's enigmatic Étant donnés. Renovation was a continued theme in the 1970s, as the institution prepared for grand celebrations in honor of the Museum's Centennial and the nation's Bicentennial. </div><div>The 1980s witnessed still more growth, with acquisitions ranging from Edgar Degas’s After the Bath to Cy Twombly's Fifty Days at Iliam. During the 1990s, the Museum made great technological strides as it prepared to leap into the 21st century. Many operations became computerized, greater energy-saving measures were implemented, and new enhancements and re-organization projects were seen both inside the galleries and outside on the grounds. </div><div>The Museum transitioned into the new millennium with ease, and continued to navigate the changes that the first decade would bring with grace and strength. Now, with an astonishing history behind it, the Philadelphia Museum of Art is poised to meet the decades to come as one of the nation's foremost destinations in which to see world-class art.</div>

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest art museums in the United States. It has collections of more than 227,000 objects that include world-class holdings of European and American paintings, prints, drawings, and decorative arts. The Perelman Building opened in 2007, and houses some of the more popular collections, as well as the Museum's library, with over 200,000 books and periodicals, and 1.6 million other documents.

Philadelphia Museum of Art

In the late 18th century, Philadelphia had a higher
population than any other city in America. Like all crowded cities, it faced
the dangers of fires and epidemics, particularly since it lacked a water
distribution system. After a yellow fever outbreak in 1793 killed one fifth of
Philadelphia's population (see <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://theclio.com/web/entry?id=23382">Lazaretto Quarantine Station</a> for more on the epidemic), Philadelphia became the first city in the world to
consider water distribution as a municipal system. In 1798, the Watering
Committee of was formed by the Philadelphia Select and Common Councils, charged
with the task of providing potable water for the city. Centre Square Works,
engineered in 1801 by Benjamin Henry Latrobe and his assistant Frederick Graff,
consisted of two steam-powered pumping stations built to draw water from the
Schuylkill River to Centre Square (where City Hall now stands). However, the
tanks were not large enough to keep up with the demands of the rapidly growing
city.



Frederick Graff was appointed Superintendent of the works in
1805, and designed the buildings and technology of Fairmount Water Works on the
east bank of the Schuylkill to supplement the older Centre Square system. The
first Fairmount Water Works buildings were constructed beginning in 1812 and
were operational three years later. The Federal-style Engine House held two
steam engines (one in operation and one as backup in case the first failed),
one a low pressure Bolton &amp; Watts style built in part at Eagle Works in
Philadelphia and the other a high pressure Columbian engine built at the Mars
Works in Philadelphia. The engines pumped water 96 feet up to the two million
gallon reservoir atop Morris Hill (or Faire Mount, now occupied by the
Philadelphia Museum of Art). Five water mains transported water from the
reservoir into the old Centre Square system, powered simply by gravity as the water
flowed down the hill into the city. The original pipes were hollowed-out logs,
delivering fresh water to homes and fire hydrants.



In 1818 and 1821, boiler explosions caused three deaths and financial
setbacks to an already expensive (nearly $31,000 per year) and overtasked system.
Following the first of the boiler explosions, the city decided to build a dam
across the fast-flowing Schuylkill at Fairmount to provide water power to the
pumping station. In 1819, Philadelphia purchased the water rights at the six-foot
Falls of the Schuylkill from Josiah White and Joseph Gillingham. The 1,204-foot
long crib dam, 270-foot earthen mound dam, millrace and head arches, and canal
locks were designed by Ariel Cooley and constructed by 1821 with the help of
the Schuylkill Navigation Company. At the time, it was the longest dam in the
world, crossing the river diagonally and creating a six-mile long lake behind
it. The crib dam consisted of hemlock logs filled with stone and planked over
with oak, which were attached to one another and to the rock bed of the river,
as well as the stone pier connecting it to the earthen dam, which was 15 feet
higher and crossed a portion of the river where 11-foot thick mud prevented the
anchoring of a crib.



Thanks to the dam, water was redirected into a set of
forebays behind the millhouse, which was designed by Superintendent Graff with
advice from millwright Thomas Oakes. The neoclassical millhouse held eight pumps
and eight water wheels (installed individually from 1822 and 1843), each
fifteen feet wide by sixteen to eighteen feet in diameter, as well as
tempiettos at each end of the building, one for the Watering Committee Building
and one as a Caretaker's House. Each wheel spun at around 14 revolutions per minute,
with a capacity of up to 121.4 gallons of water per revolution. About 30
gallons of water through the wheels was needed to pump one gallon up to the
reservoir; the excess rejoined the natural flow of the river below the dam. The
cost of pumping dropped so dramatically with the switch from steam to water
power that the Fairmount Water Works became the most profitable business in
Philadelphia. In 1835, the Engine House was remodeled to create a public saloon
with a new porch overlooking the river, and the grounds were landscaped and
decorated with sculptures by Philadelphia artist William Rush, as well as
fountains and promenades. The following year, three new reservoirs were added
to Morris Hill. After the death of Superintendent Graff in 1846, his son,
Frederick Graff, Jr. took over operations.



At high tide, twice a day, the Schuylkill River flowed
backwards, filling the wells of the water wheels and stopping them for hours at
a time. Replacement in 1851 of the vertical wheels with horizontal wheels
powering Jonval turbines, unaffected by changes in the flow of the river,
solved the problem. A new area between the Engine House and millhouse was built
for the gear train for the turbines, as well as an engine room below the Engine
House terrace. A new reservoir at Corinthian Avenue required the construction
of a standpipe in 1852, and a New Mill House at the mound dam was built from
1859-1862 in order to accommodate three larger Jonval turbines, under the instruction
of engineer John Birkenbine. The Old Mill House was also remodeled to house
three additional turbines installed between 1868 and 1872; Frederick Graff, Jr.
built, in the same year, a classical pavilion based on a drawing made by his
father in 1820. The crib dam was replaced 38 feet beyond its original line and
a pier was built to link it with the mound dam, but the original cribs remain
in place to this day.



None of these measures could address the mounting problem of
pollution in the Schuylkill River, however, which had concerned the city as
early as the 1840s. As a precaution, the city had purchased land upriver of the
Water Works to prevent industrial development, and soon after the end of the
Civil War, Fairmount Park was created to protect the water quality of the
river. Beginning in 1866, a series of surveys sought new water sources for the
city of Philadelphia. An 1868 law proposed to increase fines for industrial pollution
of the Schuylkill as far as Norristown from $100 to $1,000, but businesses
petitioned against the legislature. In spite of the efforts of the city and the
water company, pollution of both the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers increased
steadily. The waters ran black, and tens of thousands of Philadelphians died of
typhoid fever and cholera epidemics between the 1870s and the beginning of the
20th century. In 1905, the Purity of Waters Act prohibited sewage pollution of
Pennsylvania waterways, though without a sewage treatment plant, it would be the
1950s before such pollution of the river ended. Meanwhile, the city of
Philadelphia constructed water filtration plants, eliminating bacteria and
chlorinating the water supply. When the plants were completed in 1909,
Fairmount Water Works was decommissioned. The property went to the Mayor for
use as a Public Aquarium in 1911, and all the machinery except for an 1851
Jonval turbine and pump was removed by March of the following year. The
reservoirs were drained, replaced by the Philadelphia Museum of Art,
constructed beginning in 1919. The standpipe and distribution arch were removed
during the following decade.



The Water Works buildings served as the Philadelphia
Aquarium from November 1911-1962, with the lone Jonval turbine in the former
Engine House providing water to the tanks. By the 1920s, the aquarium was one
of the four largest in the world. The Engine House served as an office building
with a lecture hall containing tanks from the 1893 Chicago and 1905 St. Louis
Fairs. Freshwater tanks were housed in the Old Mill House and saltwater tanks
in the New Mill House. The forebay became a winter home for seals from New
Jersey. After the aquarium closed in December of 1962, the Water Works buildings
were converted for use as the John B. Kelly Pool, which served competitive
swimmers and Philadelphia students as a practice facility. The efforts of Susan
Meyers and the Junior League of Philadelphia in the 1970s led to the
restoration of the Water Works as a historic site, and the passage of the Clean
Water Act in 1972 led to the Philadelphia Water Department's need for a permanent
educational facility on public stewardship of urban watersheds. It was decided
in 1974 that the Water Works would be restored as a recreational and
educational facility with an emphasis on its historic utility.



Fairmount Water Works was declared a National Historic Civil
Engineering Landmark in 1975, a National Historic Landmark in 1976, and a
National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark in 1977. Archaeological
investigations on both the Water Works and the dam began in the 1970s and are
ongoing. The Fairmount Dam, now maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
has been rebuilt in concrete. Though it is no longer used for water power, the
dam still holds the water supply for the city's Belmont and Queen Lane Pumping
Stations. The six-mile lake held back by the dam, known as the Schuylkill Pool,
allows space for the Boathouse Row based Schuylkill Navy and Philadelphia Canoe
Club. The original locks on the west bank were demolished in 1950, but a
portion of the guard lock wall remains. Environmental legislation led to
significant reduction of pollution of the Schuylkill, which became
Pennsylvania's first Scenic River in 1978 and a National Heritage Area in 2000.
The restored Old Mill House and Engine House have served since 2003 as the
Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center, which chronicles the 200 year
history of Philadelphia's water supply and houses interactive exhibits and
participatory labs on water quality. Classes for schoolchildren and public
lectures are also held in the interpretive center, which doubles as the
Delaware River Basin's Official Watershed Education Center and the Gateway
Center for the Schuylkill River National and State Heritage Area. The Fairmount
Water Works is also the repository for urban watershed research and the
Philadelphia Water Department's green management solutions for the treatment of
storm water. In 2006, the Water Works Restaurant and Lounge opened in the
Engine House and Caretaker's House. The South Garden (originally designed by
Frederick Graff in 1829) and Cliffside Path were restored to an 1875 landscape,
including the restored Marble Fountain (out of order for over 115 years), 1848
Gothic-style Graff Memorial, and bust of Frederick Graff, with reproduction
light fixtures, benches, and railings added. The cast-iron railings along the
Cliffside Path to the Philadelphia Museum of Art were recreated and the path
repaved and stabilized. 


Marker Inscriptions:

Fairmount Dam

The steam engines originally used to pump river water up to
the Reservoir were dangerous and expensive to operate. Because of this, the
Watering Committee decided to convert the Water Works to water power. The
Fairmount Dam was built to achieve this goal. / Located to your right, the dam
crosses the Schuylkill River at an angle. It diverted the river from its
natural channel into the Forebay, now filled-in. At 2,008 feet, this innovative
dam was the longest in the United States when completed in 1821. It was
designed by Massachusetts engineer Ariel Cooley. / In addition to providing
water power, the dam created a pool of calm, pond-like water stretching five
miles upriver. The "Fairmount Pool" has been popularly used for
boating and recreation from the 1820s to the present.



Fairmount Water Works

Centerpiece of Philadelphia's
water system, 1815-1909. The neoclassical buildings, designed by Frederick
Graff and Frederic Graff, Jr., concealed huge machines that pumped Schuylkill
River water to a reservoir above, whence it flowed to the city. Power was
originally supplied by Oliver Evans' high-pressure steam engine, the largest of
its day. After 1821 the pumps were driven by breast wheels; after 1851, by
turbines.

Fairmount Water Works, dating to 1812, was declared a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1975, a National Historic Landmark in 1976, and a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark in 1977. The Fairmount Dam, originally constructed in 1821, is no longer used for water power, but still holds the water supply for the city's Belmont and Queen Lane Pumping Stations. The restored Old Mill House and Engine House have served since 2003 as the Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center, which chronicles the 200 year history of Philadelphia's water supply and houses interactive exhibits and participatory labs on water quality. Classes for schoolchildren and public lectures are also held in the interpretive center, which doubles as the Delaware River Basin's Official Watershed Education Center and the Gateway Center for the Schuylkill River National and State Heritage Area. The Fairmount Water Works is also the repository for urban watershed research and the Philadelphia Water Department's green management solutions for the treatment of storm water. In 2006, the Water Works Restaurant and Lounge opened in the Engine House and Caretaker's House. The South Garden (originally designed by Frederick Graff in 1829) and Cliffside Path have also been restored and are open to the public.

Fairmount Dam and Water Works

In this statue, President Abraham Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation. In 1866, $22,000, was raised for this statue and Randolph Rogers was commissioned to complete the work. The statue was dedicated on September 22, 1871. In 2001, the monument was relocated from a traffic island to east of the road.

Statue of Abraham Lincoln

Robert
Morris, signer of both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution,
fell into severe debt by the end of the 18th century and was forced
to sell off his land holdings, which included an extensive estate along the Schuylkill
River.&nbsp; Part of this estate was purchased
at a sheriff’s auction by Henry Pratt.&nbsp;
Pratt was a wealthy importer/exporter who owned his own shipping line.&nbsp; He also amassed a significant fortune as a
Philadelphia land developer.&nbsp; He designed
Lemon Hill and oversaw its construction.&nbsp;
It was completed in 1800 on a bluff overlooking the river and historical
Boathouse Row.&nbsp; Pratt improved the
gardens on his land and opened them up to the public.&nbsp; He used Lemon Hill as a summer retreat until
he sold it for the princely sum of $225,000 in 1836, two years prior to his
death.

The mansion
was then occupied by various owners until it became one of the earliest
properties purchased by the city, in 1844, in order to create Fairmount Park.&nbsp; The city then leased it out to various entities
over the ensuing decades, to include a beer garden, restaurant, candy shop and
ice cream parlor.&nbsp; Needless to say, these
tenants, and the city, did little to maintain the historic home and grounds,
and both fell into disrepair by the start of the 20th century.&nbsp; 

Luckily, the
home came to be occupied by architectural historian and director of the
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Fiske Kimball, in 1925.&nbsp; He and his wife, Marie, spent the better part
of the next two years restoring the home and then maintaining it while they
lived there for the next thirty years.&nbsp;
In 1957, the commissioners of Fairmount Park gave license to the
Colonial Dames of America to use Lemon Hill as their headquarters and a place for
public exhibitions.&nbsp; They raised funds
and took Lemon Hill through another extensive renovation in 1976 and were
joined in their efforts by the Friends of Lemon Hill in 1987.&nbsp; The process of improving the grounds and
gardens began in 2002 and is a continuing endeavor.&nbsp; 

The house
itself features three oval parlors, stacked one atop the other.&nbsp; These parlors were constructed with curved
fireplace mantles and doors.&nbsp; The home
also possesses detailed woodwork, a grand curving staircase, Chinese
Chippendale railings and a large, second-floor Palladian window.&nbsp; The Dames have also established themed
tours.&nbsp; They include, but are not limited
to, “Life and Death in the Early 19th Century” and “Risky Business:
Creating (and Losing) Fortunes in America.”&nbsp;
&nbsp;&nbsp;

Built from 1799-1801, Lemon Hill Mansion and its grounds were originally part of a 300-acre estate owned by Robert Morris.  A 43-acre section, known as “The Hills,” was purchased by wealthy Philadelphia merchant, Henry Pratt, in 1799.  This section included a greenhouse that contained lemon trees, and it is from those trees that Lemon Hill derived its name.  The house and gardens were purchased by the city in 1844 and the house served as the home of Fiske Kimball, first director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, from 1925-1955.  It is now a historic house museum maintained by the Colonial Dames of America and the Friends of Lemon Hill.

Philadelphia City Hall to the Museum of Art

All Wars Memorial to Colored Soldiers and Sailors

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Additional Information