Dewey Arch

The Dewey Arch at Fifth Avenue and 24th street in 1900, the tower of Madison Square Garden is visible in the background

The Dewey Arch was a triumphal arch that stood from 1899 to 1901 at Madison Square in Manhattan, New York.^[1] It had been erected for the parade in honor of Admiral George Dewey to celebrate his victory in the Battle of Manila Bay at the Philippines in 1898.^[2]

In spring 1899, planning for the parade, which was scheduled for September, began. Architect Charles R. Lamb^[3] found support for his idea of building a triumphal arch amongst the members of the National Sculpture Society, of which he also was a member. A committee of the society, comprising Lamb, Karl Bitter, Frederick W. Ruckstull, John Quincy Adams Ward, and John De Witt Warner,^[4] proposed the construction of an arch to the city of New York, which approved these plans in July 1899.

With only about two months left, it was decided to build the arch and its colonnade in staff, a material that had been used for the temporary buildings of several World's Fairs. Modeled after the Arch of Titus in Rome,^[2][4] the Dewey Arch was decorated with the works of 28 sculptors and featured a large quadriga (done by Ward)^[4] on top that showed four horses drawing a ship. At night, the arch was illuminated with electric light bulbs.^[5]

After the parade on September 30, 1899, the arch quickly began to deteriorate. An attempt to raise money to have the arch rebuilt with more durable materials (as had been done for the arch in Washington Square Park) failed, and thus the arch was demolished in 1901. The larger sculptures were sent to Charleston for an exhibit, and were destroyed afterwards.^[2]

Notes

1. ^ Cusack, The Dewey Arch.
2. ^ ^{a b c} Gray, Streetscapes...
3. ^ Smithsonian, Scrapbook....
4. ^ ^{a b c} Sharp p. 52f.
5. ^ Nye, p. 51.

References

• Cusack, A.: The Dewey Arch, January 19, 2005. URL last accessed 2007-01-30.
• Gray, C.: Streetscapes: Monumental Parallels; The Arch and the Bandshell, The New York Times, May 10, 1992. URL last accessed 2007-01-30.
• Nye, D. E.: Electrifying America: social meanings of a new technology, 1880-1940, MIT Press, July 1992. ISBN 0-262-64030-9.
• Sharp, L. I.; Ward, J. Q. A.: John Quincy Adams Ward, Dean of American Sculpture, University of Delaware Press, July 1985.ISBN 0874132533.
• Smithsonian: Charles R. Lamb scrapbook on the Dewey Arch, 1899-1901. URL last accessed 2007-01-30.

External links

• Arches in New York City.