Civil and military bodies were invited to take part in the ceremonies, and, in short, everything was done to make the event impressive and memorable. Loudon Snowden, agreed, likewise, to deliver the oration of the occasion. A distinguished and eloguent soldier and citizen, Colonel A. Invitations were sent to many distinguished gentlemen, and about 300 soldiers' orphans were expected to take part in the ceremonies. May 12th, 1884, the Executive Committee were able to report that the monument had been placed in position in the lot at Mount Moriah Cemetery, and preparations were made for its dedication. The life-like character of the form and features is the chief merit of this fine statue, and one which, of itself, places it high in the scale of art. The workmanship is perfect in every detail and particular the color of the bronze golden and rich, and the pose and general effect of the figure has been pronounced by art critics as fine as any similar statue in the country. The figure is 7 feet 2 inches in height, and stands upon a perfectly proportioned base about 8 feet square at the bottom, and 9 feet high, giving an altitude to the whole work of 16 feet 2 inches.
The result is a noble statue in bronze of a soldier at parade-rest. a Philadelphia firm having a national reputation - "for a bronze figure of a soldier, and to arrange with the Philadelphia Granite Company for a granite base for same."
Several designs for a monument were submitted to the Executive Committee, but it was felt that a fine statue of a soldier suited best as a memorial intended not to honor some great general or other officer, but to perpetuate the memory of men in the ranks who had died in their county's cause.Īt the stated meeting, held June 13th, 1883, the Executive Committee was authorized to contract with Henton & Bro. It was also decided to erect a suitable monument to these men who were, in every way, as worthy of being honored as if they had fallen in actual battle. Now it was proposed to have, as far as possible, one general burial lot for the inmates who should succumb to disease or the effects of old wounds. Very many of those dying, however, were buried by their friends in their own denominational grounds. The following article is from the "Historical Sketch of the Soldiers' Home" published by the Soldiers' Home of the City of Philadelphia in 1886:Īs early as October 13th, 1869, we find by reference to the minutes, the action of the Executive Committee in purchasing a lot in Mount Moriah Cemetery approved, and instructions given to have the same inclosed and improved.īefore that time the Home had had the use of the old Cooper Shop Volunteer Refreshment Saloon lot in the same cemetery. At that time, it was only proposed to mount a cannon on a granite base, as a mark of respect to the memory of the soldiers buried there. On June 11, 1874, the Board of Managers of the Soldiers' Home met to make arrangements to erect a monument on the burial lot owned by the organization in Mount Moriah Cemetery. The building became the new site for the Soldiers' Home in the City of Philadelphia in 1866.
In December 1865, the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon sold their building at auctions and the sale proceeds were earmarked for the erection of a monument over the remains of about sixty soldiers who died in the hospital located at Sixteenth and Filbert Streets during the war. By 1865, they had merged and became one entity the Soldiers' Home in the City of Philadelphia. During the war, two charitable organizations sprang up to care for Union soldiers passing through Philadelphia the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon and the Cooper Shop Volunteer Refreshment Saloon. The earliest known mention of a monument for the soldiers buried at the Soldiers' Home Burial Lot is from December 1865. Soldier stood at the Soldiers' Home Burial Lot in Mount Moriah Cemetery, Yeadon, Delaware Co., Pa. From 1883 until the early 1970s, a monument immortalizing the U.S.
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