Description: Attached document reads: [PAGE 1] “To Americans the Washington Monument is the national symbol of Washington the city and Washington the man. As a landmark visible for miles by day, or by night when it is illuminated by brilliant floodlights, it is a fitting introduction to the Capital of the Nation. As a monument its simplicity of line and austere dignity make it an appropriate national memorial to the first President.” The actually building of this shaft has an interesting history for it was not completed until December 6, 1884, after more than a century of efforts made by vacillation, financial difficulties, political bickering, religious intolerance and even theft of the Monument itself. On August 7, 1783, even before the British troops had been evacuated from the erstwhile Colonies, Congress passed a resolution providing, “That an equestrian statue of George Washington be erected at the place where the resident of congress shall be established …. The statue should be supported upon a marble pedestal on which should be represented four principal events of the war which he commanded in person…” When L-Enfant drew up his plans for the Federal City in 1791 he included a place for the equestrian statue of Washington. The place is approximately the same spot upon which the monument was constructed. Washington, in his modesty, objected to any expenditure from the limited government resources, and the matter was dropped. After Washington’s death in December, 1799, John Marshall proposed a marble tomb. However, after two years of haggling, the appropriation failed to pass the Senate. Until 1848 nothing definite resulted from the several efforts made to raise funds for the monument [PAGE 2] In 1848, Congress granted the Washington National .Monument Society a site on public ground “not otherwide occupied.” On July 4, 1848, the cornerstone was laid with elaborate Masonic rites. Washington’s trowel, used in laying the cornerstone of the Capitol in 1793, was used by Grand Master French. George Winthrop, Speaker of the House, made the formal address. Contributions were made. Citizens of Alabam offered to quarry, cut, and dress a stone for the Memorial in lieu of a monetary donation. This plan was eagerly accepted by the Society and calls went out for contributions in kind. States, societies, fraternal orders, individuals, and even foreign powers sent appropriately inscribed stones. One block of marble from the Temple of Concord at Rome came as a gift of Pop Pius IX. All have been set in the inner walls of the shaft where visitors using the stairs may pause and read the memorial inscriptions --- all except one, the one sent by the Pope. A New anti-foreign, anti-catholic political organization, the American party, protested this “Papist” gift. When their complained were disregarded they resorted to violence. On the night of March 5, 1854, a band of masked men overpowered the night watchman at the Monument, and stole the disputed block of marble. It was never recovered. It is believed that the “Know Nothings,” as the members of the American Party were popularly called, smashed it with sledge hammers and dropped the fragments into the Potomac. This act of vandalism outraged the entire world, and donations of stones and money abruptly ceased. [PAGE 3] The monument became a political football in 1876. During this year the Centennial Exposition was held in Philadelphia. It had not been prospering as had been expected, and the Democratic House voted to meet in Independence Hall and re-enact the signing of the Declaration of Independence, hoping to stimulate interest in the exposition. The Republican Senate, pointing out that the House had been elected on an economy program now proposed to have a “grand jollification on public funds,” defeated the measure. Unhappily for the Republicans, the public took this move of the Senate as an unpatriotic gesture. The Senate then cast about for some means to redeem itself. The Washington Monument, bleak and unfinished, was there before their eyes. Senator Sherman hastily introduced a measure appropriated $100,000 to complete it, fully expecting that the Democratic House, smarting under the rebuke administered, would reject the bill. This the House would doubtless have done had not several astute members of the Monument Society appeared before the Appropriations Committee and pointed out the danger of drawing down public disapproval on the heads of the Democrats. Eventually the act was passed with an Appropriations Committee and pointed out the danger of drawing down public disapproval on the heads of the Democrats. Eventually the act was passed with an appropriation of $200,000 payable $50,000 a year for four years. The Senate passed the bill, which was approved, by President Grant on August 2, 1876. Work proceeded rapidly. On February 21, 1885, Robert Winthrop, who had delivered the formal address at the laying of the cornerstone 36 years before, dedicated the Washington Monument. On October 9, 1888, it was opened to the public. The Monument is 555 feet 5½ inches high. The elevator and a flight of 898 steps ascend to a chamber at the 500 foot level directly under the pyramidal cap. Paired windows in each wall open upon remarkable views of the city and countryside. [PAGE 4] Through the east window may be seen the Mall, the Constitution Avenue group of buildings, the Capitol, the Library of Congress, the House and Senate Office buildings, the Supreme Court Building, and the Union Station. To the south lies the waterfront of Washington, Potomac Park and River. To the west are the Army and Navy buildings, the reflecting pool, and the Lincoln Memorial. To the north are the White House, the State and Treasury buildings and to the northwest, beyond the principal residential section, the Washington Cathedral. The Monument is a hollow shaft, without decoration or embellishment other than the east entrance door and the paired windows on each side at the 500 foot level. The design is generally attributed to Robert Mills, but the present monument has little in common with Mill’s original plan The exterior blocks of marble are laid in 2 foot courses of regular ashlar, or squared stone, backed by rubble masonry, up to the 150 foot level, where government engineers begin their work. They substituted for the rubble masonry backing a solid wall of New England granite, which is carried to the 452 foot level, where through and through blocks of marble begin. At the 470 foot level the stone ribs of the pyramidion itself, starting at the 500 foot level, is composed of marble slabs 7 inches thick laid over the stone ribs. A 3,300 pound capstone secures the slab. The capstone is tipped with an aluminum pyramid 8 9/10 inches high, weighting 100 ounces, which is surrounded by 144 platinum-tipped lightning conductors. This, the largest and costliest solid block of aluminum cast up to that time, 1884, is inscribed on all four side – north, names of the members of the commission which completed the construction; west, important dates in the history of the Monument; south, the names of the technical staff; east, the Latin phrase, “Laus Deo.” View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B11F04_15_001
Subjects: Ohio State School for the Blind; Models; Washington Monument (Washington, D.C.)
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)
 

Description: Caption reads: "Fort Washington monument, East Third Street, Cincinnati, Ohio. Photo by Federal Writers' Photographer, District #12. June 10, 1937." The Fort Washington Monument was originally erected on June 14, 1901 by the Patriotic Societies of Ohio to commemorate Fort Washington, a bulwark against the Indian menace during the 1790's. From Fort Washington, Generals Harmar and St. Clair planned expeditions against the Indians that ended in disaster; not until "Mad Anthony" Wayne defeated the Indians at Fallen Timbers was the Indian danger allayed. Ini 1803 the garrison moved to Newport, Kentucky on the south side of the Ohio River. In 1808 Fort Washington was torn down, as it was no longer needed, and the reservation divided into town lots. The monument 9' tall memorial, made from Ohio stone, was made to look like one of the old fort's blockhouses, and was placed at the center of East Third Street, near the intersection with Ludlow Street. The monument was surrounded with a chain railing, with four old cannons serving as fence posts. The west face of the monument displayed two bronze plaques, the lower of which was an outline map of the main portion of the fort, showing the streets which intersected it and the immediate area. The upper tablet bore an inscription, surrounded by 13 stars, which read: "This Tablet erected by the Patriotic Societies of Ohio, Marks the Location of Fort Washington, Built 1789, Demolished 1808, MDCCCC." Though much effort was taken in 1900 to determine the exact location of the old fort before the monument was placed, in 1952 construction workers found actual remains from the fort's powder magazine a short distance away, and archeologists determined that this was the true location of Fort Washington. In 1998, partially due to the expansion of Interstate 71, the monument was moved to this new found site on Arch Street, just south of East Fourth Street. A new plaque, placed on the monument for the re-dedication reads: "Forth Washington, 1789 - 1808. This monument stands at the site that served as a major military base for the Northwest Territory. The stone replica of a blockhouse was originally dedicated on June 14, 1901. Rededicated at present site November 11, 1998. Cincinnati Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B04F02_33_01
Subjects: Cincinnati (Ohio)--Buildings, structures, etc.; Fort Washington (Ohio); Monuments--Ohio
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Handwritten on reverse: "Monument at Washington D.C." The Washington Monument is an obelisk near the west end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate the first U.S. president, General George Washington. The monument, made of marble, granite, and sandstone, is both the world's tallest stone structure and the world's tallest obelisk, standing 555 feet 5⅛ inches. There are taller monumental columns, but they are neither all stone nor true obelisks. It is also the tallest structure in Washington D.C.. It was designed by Robert Mills, an architect of the 1840s. The actual construction of the monument began in 1848 but was not completed until 1884, almost 30 years after the architect's death. The cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1848; the capstone was set on December 6, 1884, and the completed monument was dedicated on February 21, 1885. It officially opened October 9, 1888. Upon completion, it became the world's tallest structure, a title previously held by the Cologne Cathedral. The monument held this designation until 1889, when the Eiffel Tower was completed in Paris, France. The monument stands due east of the Reflecting Pool and the Lincoln Memorial. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B09F10_050_1
Subjects: Washington, D.C. Washington Monument; Mills, Robert, 1781-1855; Washington, George, 1732-1799
Places: Washington (District of Columbia)
 

Description: This photograph shows Edward DuBois Washington, minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E. Church) and husband to Felma Harper Washington. This photograph is part of the Felma Harper Washington Collection. Felma Harper Washington was a leader, minister, musician, writer and historian in Bellfontaine, Ohio. Born in Bellefontaine in 1903, she traveled the country working with the African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E. Church) and married Reverend Edward Washington. She founded the Harper Memorial Library and the Museum of African-American Historical Research. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: NAM_MSS2034_aaeo_90-18_020
Subjects: African Americans; Clergy; African Methodist Episcopal Church;
 

Description: This image is an engraved portrait of Major Ebenezer Denny (1761-1882), Revolutionary War soldier and first mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In this portrait, Denny is wearing a ruffled shirt and a high-collared waistcoat and coat. This engraving appears opposite the title page of his book "Military Journal of Major Ebenezer Denny, An Officer in the Revolutionary and Indian Wars" (1859), published in Philadelphia. Denny was born March 11, 1761, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and joined the Continental Army in 1778. He witnessed the British surrender at the 1781 Siege of Yorktown (Yorktown, Virginia) and wrote a description of that event in his war journal. It is one of the most frequently quoted accounts of the event. After the Revolutionary War, Denny also witnessed two of the worst military defeats of U.S. military forces by American Indians: Harmar’s Campaign and St. Clair’s Defeat. Both events occurred in the Northwest Territory, in present-day Ohio. In fall 1790, Josiah Harmar, commander of the U.S. army in the Northwest Territory, was stationed at Fort Washington (present-day Cincinnati). He received orders from Secretary of War Henry Knox to end the threat of American Indian attack in western Ohio. Harmar marched from Fort Washington with 320 regular soldiers and roughly 1,100 militiamen, primarily from Pennsylvania and Kentucky. The militiamen were poorly trained and badly equipped, and the U.S. forces were soundly defeated in a series of battles with the American Indian forces led by Miami chief Mishikinakwa (Little Turtle). Following Harmar's defeat, native attacks against settlers increased. In 1791, Major-General Arthur St. Clair, governor of the Northwest Territory, led another campaign against the American Indian tribes in western Ohio, hoping to succeed where Harmar had failed. Lieutenant Ebenezer Denny was St. Clair’s aide-de-camp. St. Clair ordered the construction of forts in what is now western Ohio. He and his men left Fort Washington in September 1791. After a two-day journey, the troops stopped and built Fort Hamilton. Then they advanced forty-five miles northward and built Fort Jefferson. From the beginning of his campaign, St. Clair had trouble with his poorly trained and demoralized troops. Although it was still early fall, his men faced cold temperatures, rain, snowfall, and insufficient food. Despite these problems, St. Clair continued to advance against the Miami natives. By November 3, his men had arrived on the banks of the Wabash River, near some of the Miami villages. The next day Little Turtle, along with Shawnee chief Weyapiersenwah (Blue Jacket), led a large alliance of seasoned volunteer warriors from nine different American Indian tribes against the U.S. troops and soundly defeated them. In his account of the day’s events, Denny wrote, “The ground was literally covered with the dead.” The battle known as “St. Clair’s Defeat” remains the worst defeat of the U.S. Army at the hands of American Indians. On November 19, Denny left for Philadelphia, where he had the unenviable task of informing President George Washington and Secretary of War Knox of the defeat. Washington demanded that St. Clair resign from the army. St. Clair did so on April 7, 1792, but remained governor of the Northwest Territory. In 1794, Washington dispatched General Anthony Wayne to succeed where St. Clair had failed. Wayne defeated the Native Americans at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in August 1794. In 1795, most natives in modern-day Ohio signed the Treaty of Greeneville, relinquishing all of their land holdings in Ohio except what is now the northwestern corner of the state. Denny continued his military service until 1794, when he resigned his commission and settled near Pittsburgh. He entered local politics and held several offices before being elected the city’s first mayor in 1816. He resigned the office in 1817 because of ill health. He died in July 1822. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07028
Subjects: American Revolutionary War, 1775-1783; Kekionga, Battle of, Ohio, 1791; American Indians--Warfare; Northwest Territory--History; Veterans; Mayors
Places: Carlisle (Pennsylvania); Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania);
 

Description: Print depicting Fort Washington in 1790, and based on a drawing by Cap. Jon. Heart. The lithograph was first published in 1848 in Samuel Prescott Hildreth's book "Pioneer History" (Pioneer History: Being an Account of the First Examinations of the Ohio Valley, and the Early Settlement of the Northwest Territory ; Chiefly from Original Manuscripts). The Fort, named for George Washington, was built in 1789 and 1790 on the Ohio River near modern-day Cincinnati. It was built to protect the homes of settlers in the Symmes Purchase and served as base for expeditions against Native American tribes. It was abandoned in 1803. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL02875
Subjects: Hamilton County (Ohio); Ohio History--Settlement and Early Statehood; Fort Washington (Ohio)
Places: Fort Washington (Ohio); Cincinnati (Ohio)
 

Description: A black and white photograph of the aerial view of Washington, D. C. The image was taken from an airplane flying over several famous attractions of Washington, D. C., including U.S. Capitol Building, Washington Monument, Lincoln Monument, Reflecting Pool, National Museum of National History, Arlington Memorial Bridge, and The Library of Congress. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV83_B01F05_022
Subjects: Washington (D.C.); Aerial photographs; Monuments & memorials
Places: Washington, D.C.
 

Description: A black and white photograph of the aerial view of Washington, D. C. The image features a blimp flying over the Lincoln Memorial. The memorial is located in Washington, D.C at the west end of the National Mall. Finished in 1922, the Lincoln Memorial was built in memory of President Abraham Lincoln. Other famous attractions shown in the photograph includes U.S. Capitol Building, Washington Monument, Reflecting Pool, National Museum of National History, Arlington Memorial Bridge, Potomac River and Tidal Basin. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV83_B01F05_023_01
Subjects: Washington (D.C.); Aerial photographs; Monuments & memorials
Places: Washington, D.C.
 

Description: Original description reads: "Cinci., O., Sept. 1937 Fort Washington Monument." In 1789, Fort Washington was built to protect early settlements located in the Symmes Purchase in the Miami Valley of what is now southwestern Ohio. The fort was located in modern-day Cincinnati and protected settlers of that city in its early years. The stockade's walls were two stories high with blockhouses located at each corner. The fort was named in honor of President George Washington. In 1790, Harmar used Fort Washington to launch an expedition against the Miami Indians, whose principal city was Kekionga (modern-day Fort Wayne, Indiana). The fort would serve similar purposes for the remainder of the 1790s until the United States Army abandoned it in 1803. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B04F02_14_01
Subjects: Fort Washington (Ohio)--Monuments; Cincinnati (Ohio)
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: A photograph of the famous George Washington sculpture by Horatio Greenough (1840). The statue was original placed in the US Capitol rotunda before being moved to the East Lawn in 1843, where this picture was taken. It remained there until 1908 when it was moved indoors. It is currently on display at the Smithsonian Museum of American History. This photograph was taken by traveling photographer Albert J. Ewing, ca. 1896-1912. Born in 1870 in Washington County, Ohio, near Marietta, Ewing most likely began his photography career in the 1890s. The 1910 US Census and a 1912-1913 directory list him as a photographer. A negative signed "Ewing Brothers" and a picture with his younger brother, Frank, indicate that Frank may have joined the business. After 1916, directories list Albert as a salesman. He died in 1934. The Ewing Collection consists of 5,055 glass plate negatives, each individually housed and numbered. Additionally, the collection includes approximately 450 modern contact prints made from the glass plate negatives. Subjects include infants and young children, elderly people, families, school and religious groups, animals and rural scenes. In 1982, the Ohio Historical Society received the collection, still housed in the original dry plate negative boxes purchased by Albert J. Ewing. A selection of the original glass plate negatives were exhibited for the first time in 2013 at the Ohio Historical Center. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV71_b06_f387
Subjects: Ewing, Albert J. (1870-1934); Portrait photography--United States--History; Sculptures; Washington, George, 1732-1799;
Places: Washington (District of Columbia);
 

Description: Illustration of the apotheosis of President Abraham Lincoln and President George Washington. Lincoln embraces Washington in heaven as Washington places a wreath over his head. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: NAM_SC20_3
Subjects: Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865; Washington, George, 1732-1799; Presidents -- United States; American Revolutionary War, 1775-1783; Civil War 1861-1865
 

Description: These five photographs document damage to Washington Court House, Ohio after a tornado struck the city at 8:07 P.M. on September 8, 1885. The tornado destroyed much of the city and killed six people. The tornado left a twelve-mile path of destruction, starting seven miles west of Washington Court House and heading through the city. Damage was estimated at one million dollars. Two of those killed were children fleeing with their family from Jamestown, Ohio, which was the target of an earlier tornado. The photographs measure 8.5" x 12" (21.59 x 30.48 cm). View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3118_3737179_001
Subjects: Ohio Government; Architecture; Climate and Weather; Courthouses; Tornadoes; Debris
Places: Washington Court House (Ohio); Fayette County (Ohio)