Home | Dodge, Grenville M.
- CountryUS
- Town:IA Des Moines
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Year of creation:1894
- Rider(s):Dodge, Grenville M.
(1831 – 1916) was a Union army officer (not a general) on the frontier and during the Civil War, a U.S. Congressman, businessman, and railroad executive who helped construct the first Transcontinental Railroad.
- Sculptor(s):Rohl-Smith, Carl
(1848 – 1900) was a Danish American sculptor who was active in Europe and, as from 1886, in the United States. Among his most noted American works is the General William Tecumseh Sherman Monument in Washington, D.C.
In 1890, Rohl-Smith was asked to implement Harriet A. Ketcham’s design for the Iowa Soldiers and Sailors Monument. Ketcham’s design was chosen by the state legislature in 1888, but she died of a stroke in 1890. Rohl-Smith was commissioned to finish the work, which was completed in 1896.
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The State of Iowa erected a Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, to commemorate Iowans who fought during the Civil War. The monument was approved in 1888, the cornerstone was laid in 1894 and the structure was completed two years later. Because controversy developed over the location and artistic details of the monument, nearly 50 years passed before its dedication in 1945. Iowa artist Harriet A. Ketcham’s design was chosen over 47 others. Unfortunately she died before the monument was completed. Four equestrians – all Iowa Civil War generals – are depicted: Marcellus M. Crocker, Grenville M. Dodge, Samuel R. Curtis, and John M. Corse.
