Dorchester Heights Monument

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Coordinates: 42°19′58.4″N 71°2′44.8″W / 42.332889°N 71.045778°W / 42.332889; -71.045778
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Dorchester Heights Monument
Peabody & Stearns
MaterialMarble
Length18.3 ft (5.6 m)
Width18.3 ft (5.6 m)
Height115 ft (35 m)
Beginning date1899
Completion date1902
Dedicated dateMarch 17, 1902
Dedicated toAmerican victory in the siege of Boston

The Dorchester Heights Monument is a large public

Peabody & Stearns and was dedicated on March 17, 1902 (Evacuation Day
).

History

Background

On the outbreak of the

municipal park.[1] The park, centered on Telegraph Hill, was called Thomas Park and was one of the first public parks in the city.[4]

In June 1898, the

Peabody & Stearns was selected.[3][7] The following month, construction bidding commenced.[8] In both 1901 and 1902, the General Court voted to increase funding for the construction, the first time for $8,000 and the second time for $3,000. Additionally, a total of $10,000 was appropriated for dedication purposes.[9] In total, construction on the monument lasted from 1899 to 1902.[3]

Dedication

The monument in 1920

The dedication ceremony for the monument occurred on March 17, 1902, on the 126th anniversary of the evacuation of Boston.

America".[12]

Following this, the ceremony moved to the nearby South Boston High School, where an orchestra performed the overture from Mignon. Afterwards, a prayer was given by William Fairfield Warren (then-President of Boston University) and a quartet sang "Almighty Father". The orchestra then performed "Narcissus" before noted singer Alice May Bates Rice gave a solo rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner". This was followed by an oration by Massachusetts politician and statesman Henry Cabot Lodge. The quartet then sang "The Victor's Return", which was followed by another playing of "America" before the ceremony ended with the orchestra playing "American Airs".[13]

On June 21, 1997, the monument was rededicated following a $4.8 million renovation of the park.[14]

Design

Tablet on the monument's west side

The monument's design is in the

observation platform,[3] with the top one giving a view of the city, Boston Harbor, and the surrounding area.[5] The top of the monument features a cupola and a spire,[3] topped by a weather vane.[15] The total height of the monument is 115 feet (35 m).[15]

While initial considerations were given to brick or

gilded letters prepared by Charles William Eliot, President of Harvard University.[10] The inscription reads:[16]

ON THESE HEIGHTS / DURING THE NIGHT OF MARCH 4 1776 / THE AMERICAN TROOPS BESIEGING BOSTON / BUILT TWO REDOUBTS / WHICH MADE THE HARBOR AND TOWN / UNTENABLE BY THE BRITISH FLEET AND GARRISON / ON MARCH 17 THE BRITISH FLEET / CARRYING 11000 EFFECTIVE MEN / AND 1000 REFUGEES / DROPPED DOWN TO NANTASKET ROADS / AND THENCEFORTH / BOSTON WAS FREE / A STRONG BRITISH FORCE / HAD BEEN EXPELLED / FROM ONE OF THE UNITED AMERICAN COLONIES

The monument is one of several in the city related to events from the American Revolution, including the Beacon Hill Monument and the Bunker Hill Monument.[17]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Happ 2018.
  2. ^ a b A Record of the Dedication 1903, p. 5.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Morgan 2018.
  4. ^ White 2021.
  5. ^ a b Lacock 1923, p. 44.
  6. ^ A Record of the Dedication 1903, pp. 5–6.
  7. ^ Stone 1899a.
  8. ^ Stone 1899b.
  9. ^ A Record of the Dedication 1903, pp. 10–14.
  10. ^ a b A Record of the Dedication 1903, p. 7.
  11. ^ A Record of the Dedication 1903, p. 15.
  12. ^ A Record of the Dedication 1903, pp. 15–16.
  13. ^ A Record of the Dedication 1903, p. 26.
  14. ^ McCourt Construction 1997.
  15. ^ a b c d e A Record of the Dedication 1903, p. 6.
  16. ^ A Record of the Dedication 1903, p. 8.
  17. ^ Granite, Marble & Bronze 1913, p. 32.

Bibliography

  • A Record of the Dedication of the Monument on Dorchester Heights, South Boston. Boston: Governor of Massachusetts, Massachusetts Governor's Council, and Wright & Potter Printing Company. 1903 – via Google Books.
  • "Reception and Banquet at Hotel Brunswick, Wednesday Evening, August 20". Granite, Marble & Bronze. XXIII (9): 32–34. September 1913 – via Google Books.
  • Happ, John E. (September 6, 2018). "The Dorchester Heights Memorial, South Boston, and the Celebration of Evacuation Day". Journal of the American Revolution. Archived from the original on October 20, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  • Lacock, John Kennedy (1923). Boston and Vicinity. Boston: Chapple Publishing Company – via Google Books.
  • "Dorchester Heights Monument Re-Dedicated". McCourt Construction. June 23, 1997. Archived from the original on August 10, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  • SAH Archipedia. Society of Architectural Historians. Archived
    from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  • "Monumental News". Stone. XIX (5): 465–466. October 1899a – via Google Books.
  • "Monumental News". Stone. XIX (6): 564–565. November 1899b – via Google Books.
  • White, Anna (March 17, 2021). "Southie History Lesson: Thomas Park". Caught In Southie. Archived from the original on March 18, 2021. Retrieved May 5, 2021.

Further reading

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dorchester Heights Monument.
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