Description:
Constructed in 1931, The District of Columbia War Memorial was erected to honor 26,000 citizens of Washington, D.C., who bared armies during the first World War. Located in the western part of Potomac Park between the Reflecting Pool and Independence Avenue. The structure itself is a circular, open-air, Doric structure, which was purposely designed to be a memorial and a bandstand which would allow concerts to perform tribute to those who served in the war. The memorial is 47 feet in height and 44 feet in diameter. When compared to other D.C. War Memorials on the National Mall, it is alot smaller. Built almost completely out of Vermont marble, the structure has twelve columns which supports the domed roof. The height of each column is 22 feet with a diameter of 3 feet 10 inches, the memorial’s foundation is a 4-foot-high circular marble platform. Inscribed on this platform are 499 name of Washington citizens who lost their lives during World War I. They are arranged in alphabetical order with no filing system of the individual’s rank, race, or gender. In 1918, one month after the first World War finished, many Americans begin composing letters with ideas for the establishment of a memorial to honor the 26,000 combatants of the District of Columbia. It was not until 1931 when a letter enclosed with a donation from an anonymous American veteran that the District of Columbia War Memorial was built.
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General History:
In order for a memorial in Washington, DC to gain distinction, it needed to be located on federal land thus a design would have to accepted by the Commission of Fine Arts. For a new memorial to be built, it would have to receive funds from private entities. Frank B. Noyes and his wife Janet, whose family ran the Washington Evening Star newspaper, took up the task. Janet proposed the idea to replace wooden bandstand located in West Potomac Park with that of a marble composition. The memorial would be a living memorial with keeping the idea of bandstand as well as a sort of “temple” to those who died during World War I. In 1924, the first meeting regarding the construction of the District of Columbia War Memorial took place. Establishing the roles of the Commission, this first meeting focused on finding someone who could invent the memorial through drawing and this role was given to architect Frederick H. Brooke. It took four years for the exact details and location of the memorial to be completed.
President Calvin Coolidge became of the first donors of the memorial but fundraising was a slow process. Many criticized DC residents and the US Congress for not applying funds quick enough to build the memorial. However, The fundraising campaign succeeded in early 1931. When the commission was able to begin construction, six local contractors submitted bids on March 12,1931 to be apart of the project. The memorial commission decided on the lowest bidder, James Baird Co., Inc.
Symbolism/Analysis:
Debate arose with the creation of the 499 names of the men and women. Considering that several names of women were imprinted on the monument would be considered odd when applying the context of American culture in 1931, selecting the names was not an easy task for any aspect. However, Frank Noyes appointed a committee to figure out a solution to the problem in which they compiled 499 names from an developed criteria: “first, the person must have died while in active service prior to the official ending of the war, or the person must have been discharged because of a physical injury sustained during the war and died prior to November 11, 1918. Second, the person must have been an actual resident and citizen of the District of Columbia prior to his or her entry into the service.” The concluded lists need to be confirmed the War Department before any other measures were to be completed.
When the District of Columbia War Memorial replaced a worn down bandstand, it was dire to preserve the form of that weathered structure for the reason that John Philip Sousa endorsed Brooke’s design of the memorial. Sousa was a famous musician in North America during the late 1800’s; early 1900’s. He conducted the United States Marine Corps Band that performed the pop music of the era which was band music. His successful career was due to the high amount of patriotism during the early 20th century. With the increasing numbers of immigration at the time, the United State strongly needed to develop a sense of national identity and Sousa’s marches supported that cause. However, after World War II music took up electrical amplification thus adopting Jazz and other styles and this made bandstands outdated.
