Last updated: February 11, 2022
Article
Design a Memorial for War and Peace
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Not the First
The current Memorial was not the first design or even the first location for a monument to the Battle of Lake Erie, Perry, and his men. One of the first attempts to build a memorial reached a height in 1859 when a cornerstone was laid on Gibraltar Island. However, the US Civil War starting and the Cleveland area supporting a statue of Perry to be placed in Cleveland in 1860 stalled the effort for a memorial on Gibraltar Island.
In 1864 Jay Cooke, banker and finical wizard for the Union war effort, bought Gibraltar Island to build his summer home. There was a clause with his purchase of the island that a memorial could be built on the cornerstone already laid. First thing Cooke did was build a monument to Perry and his men. That way no one else could come along and build s memorial on his land. This ended and large scale public memorial to Perry and his men.
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Failures and Sucess
Between 1864 and the early 1900s there were several attempts to build a more significant memorial to Perry and the battle. All failed. 1907 Webster Huntington and John Eisemann, designer of Ohio’s state flag, enter the scene. Eisemann have been part of a geologic survey of the lake and suggested the perfect spot a memorial. The isthmus, narrow piece of land, connecting the two parts of South Bass Island. Eisenmann also drew up a design for the memorial and this was used to get the 9 states to support and give money to the project.
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Competition
The 9 states realized they did not have enough money and the significance of the battle and the memorial was national and not just for a handful of states. So the Inter-State Board for the Memorial went to the US government for help. President Taft agreed to the federal involvement on the condition the National Fine Arts Commission get to hold a competition for the design of the memorial, first for this commission. One rule for the competition was it was anonymous. Thus Eisenmann’s design was out since his design was well known.
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Guidelines for Architects in 1911
1. The Memorial will consist primarily of a shaft of considerable height, bearing, as an aid to navigation, if the designer wishes to include it, a light of the first order. The shaft must have a stairway, an elevator and a convenient outlook for the public from a high level.2. There is also to be a Museum of Historic Relics, which should be a hall of fine proportions and of a floor area of not less than three thousand square feet and not more than five thousand square feet.
The Shaft and the Museum may be grouped, combined or separated in whatever way may appear best to the competitor.
3. The remains of a number of officers and sailors, both of the British and American fleets, are interred on the island. They will be reinterred within the walls of the Memorial.
4. Maximum cost of $600,000 ($16,302,000.00 in 2020 money)
Not in the guidelines but put forward in multiple other sources the memorial was to be for the battle and peace.
Your Challenge
Design the Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial. The only guidelines we are giving you are:
1. That the design includes the remains of the officers killed during the battle.2. That the design must honor both the battle and the peace that has existed among the US, United Kingdom, and Canada for over 200 years.
No limits on cost, unlike 1911, so let your imagination run. No restrictions on materials. You can use pencil and paper, computer, paper towel rolls, cardboard or even clay. Again let your imagination run.
Now time to share your design. You can share on your refrigerator for family and friends to see. Or with your parents’ permission you can share on our Facebook page or email to us at e-mail us and we will create a photo album of all the designs on this page. By emailing or posting you give us permission to share your design on our website.