Cuyahoga County Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument

Side A: This monument, dedicated July 4, 1894, honors Cuyahoga County men and women, who performed military and patriotic duties during the Civil War (1861-1865). William J. Gleason (1846-1905), army veteran and local businessman, proposed its creation in 1879. Captain Levi Tucker Scofield (1842-1917), Cleveland architect and sculptor, designed the structure and supervised its 19-month construction by contractors, A. McAllister and Andrew Dall. George T. Brewster of Boston and George Wagner of New York, professional artists, assisted Scofield as sculptors. A 12-member Monument Commission, appointed by Governor Joseph B. Foraker in 1888, oversaw the project, which included the removal of William Walcutt’s 1860 marble statue of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry from the site. The monument’s cost of $280,000 was raised by a countywide property tax levy. An 11-member commission maintains the monument funded by the county. (continued on other side) Side B: This monument consists of a 40-ton granite column 125 feet high, topped by a 15-foot female warrior bearing a shield of “Liberty.” Six bronze “battle bands” identify 30 battles in which Cuyahoga County citizens fought. Four exterior bronze statuary groups, depicting in action the Navy, artillery, infantry, and cavalry, surround the Memorial Room. Inscribed on marble tablets within the Room are the names of approximately 9,000 soldiers and sailors. Four interior reliefs show: The Northern Ohio Soldiers Aid Society, Sanitary Commission and Hospital Service Corps, The Leaders of the War in Ohio, The Emancipation of the Slave, and The End of the War. Eight busts of local army officers and twelve medallions of prominent Ohio war commanders complete the display. Corps badges, military insignia, and accoutrements decorate the interior and exterior walls, doors, and stained glass windows. (read other side)