National McKinley Birthplace Memorial
Encyclopedia
The National McKinley Birthplace Memorial Library and Museum is the national memorial to President William McKinley located in Niles, Ohio
. Also known as the McKinley Memorial Library, Museum & Birthplace Home, the Memorial is a 232 foot by 136 foot by 38 foot marble monument with two wings. One houses the McKinley Memorial Library, which is a public library. The second wing features the McKinley Museum with exhibits about President McKinley, and an auditorium.
The McKinley Birthplace Home and Research Center
is located near the Memorial at 40 South Main Street in Niles. The historic house museum has been furnished for the period when President McKinley was in office.
signed his first act as Commander-in-Chief
, authorizing Congressional funding for a national memorial to be located in the town of McKinley’s birth: Niles, Ohio. The same act of Congress had also officially established the National McKinley Birthplace Association. Association President Joseph G. Butler, Jr.
, who had been a childhood friend and schoolmate of McKinley, began a $100,000 local campaign to raise funds for the Memorial in 1912. After securing nearly $200,000 for the Memorial without utilizing taxpayer funding, Butler and the Association sought public donations of $1 each to establish a permanent endowment. “Subscribers” (as the donors were called) would receive a book autographed by Butler “describing the work of the Memorial” that also contained a reproduction portrait of McKinley and “a facsimile of the act of Congress authorizing and commending the construction of the Birthplace Memorial.”
The Association had its own ideas for the Memorial’s general design when they announced plans to offer a prize for the best architectural proposal in 1914. The city of Niles had already set aside a five-acre park as a location for the Memorial (purchased with municipal funds), and the Association stipulated that the design would be for a granite two-story structure with a basement, and that the structure must include a 1,000-seat auditorium (the “main feature”), a public library, a “relic room” for display of assorted effects, “an assembly hall for meetings of the veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic, where State encampments may be held, and for Spanish-American War Veterans, and a room for the meetings of officials of the city.” Additionally, the Association specified that the Memorial would house not only a statue of McKinley, but also “bronze busts of men associated with him in the affairs of the nation,” like Theodore Roosevelt
, Marcus Hanna, Butler, and Andrew Carnegie
and Henry Clay Frick
, the latter two of whom were large contributors to the Memorial’s fund. Upon publication of the Association’s announcement, a competition commenced within the American Institute of Architects
.
Edgerton Swartout (who was once an architect at McKim, Mead and White), Charles A. Platt
(American landscape architect), and Edward Brodhead Green
(Albright-Knox Art Gallery
)served as judges for the competition, which comprised entries from Cass Gilbert
(architect of the Woolworth Building
), Henry Bacon
(designer of the Lincoln Memorial
), Harold Van Buren Magonigle
(architect of the McKinley National Memorial and Mausoleum), Palmer, Hornbostel and Jones
(a partner of which worked on the Queensboro Bridge
), J. L. Decker (a local architect in Niles), and Zantzinger, Borie and Medary
(designers of the Detroit Institute of Arts
).
In 1915, the competition was concluded, and the $1,000 prize was awarded to McKim, Mead, and White
. Their design, somewhat typical of their other Beaux-Arts work, reflected Greek and Roman themes in all aspects, from architectural elements to the lettering on tablets and statuary. Indeed, the entire Memorial was described not unlike a temple of antiquity, with McKinley assuming the role of “household god”:
The library was divided into two stories, with space for open stacks and meeting rooms, including one reserved for McKinley memorabilia. The auditorium, notably, was originally designed with 200 fewer seats than originally called for, and was expressly not to be for “theatrical entertainments.”
McKinley’s statue, originally conceived as a bronze monument, was carved from a single thirty-five ton piece of marble by J. Massey Rhind
.
John H. Parker Co. of New York oversaw the site’s construction.
Despite the Memorial Association’s specification for a granite structure, Georgia marble was used instead.
ing speech encouraging entry into World War I
, praised McKinley at the Memorial’s dedication ceremonies on October 5, 1917. McKinley’s sister was on hand to unveil her brother’s twelve-foot statue, and Myron T. Herrick
, George B. Cortelyou
, and Butler also spoke for the program.
Niles, Ohio
Niles is a city in Trumbull County, Ohio, United States. The city's population was 20,932 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA Metropolitan Statistical Area....
. Also known as the McKinley Memorial Library, Museum & Birthplace Home, the Memorial is a 232 foot by 136 foot by 38 foot marble monument with two wings. One houses the McKinley Memorial Library, which is a public library. The second wing features the McKinley Museum with exhibits about President McKinley, and an auditorium.
The McKinley Birthplace Home and Research Center
McKinley Birthplace Home and Research Center
The McKinley Birthplace Home and Research Center is a reconstruction of a home on the site of the birth of America's twenty-fifth President, William McKinley, in Niles, Ohio.-Original structure:...
is located near the Memorial at 40 South Main Street in Niles. The historic house museum has been furnished for the period when President McKinley was in office.
Planning
On March 4, 1909, President William Howard TaftWilliam Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
signed his first act as Commander-in-Chief
Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
, authorizing Congressional funding for a national memorial to be located in the town of McKinley’s birth: Niles, Ohio. The same act of Congress had also officially established the National McKinley Birthplace Association. Association President Joseph G. Butler, Jr.
Joseph G. Butler, Jr.
Joseph Green Butler, Jr. was an American industrialist, philanthropist, and popular historian. He is remembered primarily for establishing the first museum in the United States dedicated solely to American art....
, who had been a childhood friend and schoolmate of McKinley, began a $100,000 local campaign to raise funds for the Memorial in 1912. After securing nearly $200,000 for the Memorial without utilizing taxpayer funding, Butler and the Association sought public donations of $1 each to establish a permanent endowment. “Subscribers” (as the donors were called) would receive a book autographed by Butler “describing the work of the Memorial” that also contained a reproduction portrait of McKinley and “a facsimile of the act of Congress authorizing and commending the construction of the Birthplace Memorial.”
Competition and design
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, Marcus Hanna, Butler, and Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
and Henry Clay Frick
Henry Clay Frick
Henry Clay Frick was an American industrialist, financier, and art patron. He founded the H. C. Frick & Company coke manufacturing company, was chairman of the Carnegie Steel Company, and played a major role in the formation of the giant U.S. Steel steel manufacturing concern...
, the latter two of whom were large contributors to the Memorial’s fund. Upon publication of the Association’s announcement, a competition commenced within the American Institute of Architects
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image...
.
Edgerton Swartout (who was once an architect at McKim, Mead and White), Charles A. Platt
Charles A. Platt
Charles Adams Platt was a prominent artist, landscape gardener, landscape designer, and architect of the "American Renaissance" movement. His garden designs complemented his domestic architecture.-Early career:...
(American landscape architect), and Edward Brodhead Green
Edward Brodhead Green
E. B. Green was a major American architect from New York State. He was born in Utica, NY. He attended Cornell University, and moved to Buffalo, NY in 1881, where he was active through about 1930...
(Albright-Knox Art Gallery
Albright-Knox Art Gallery
The Albright-Knox Art Gallery is an art museum located in Delaware Park in Buffalo, New York. The gallery is a major showplace for modern art and contemporary art. It is located directly across the street from Buffalo State College.-History:...
)served as judges for the competition, which comprised entries from Cass Gilbert
Cass Gilbert
- Historical impact :Gilbert is considered a skyscraper pioneer; when designing the Woolworth Building he moved into unproven ground — though he certainly was aware of the ground-breaking work done by Chicago architects on skyscrapers and once discussed merging firms with the legendary Daniel...
(architect of the Woolworth Building
Woolworth Building
The Woolworth Building is one of the oldest skyscrapers in New York City. More than a century after the start of its construction, it remains, at 57 stories, one of the fifty tallest buildings in the United States as well as one of the twenty tallest buildings in New York City...
), Henry Bacon
Henry Bacon
Henry Bacon was an American Beaux-Arts architect who is best remembered for the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. , which was his final project.- Education and early career :...
(designer of the Lincoln Memorial
Lincoln Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial is an American memorial built to honor the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. It is located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The architect was Henry Bacon, the sculptor of the main statue was Daniel Chester French, and the painter of the interior...
), Harold Van Buren Magonigle
Harold Van Buren Magonigle
Harold Van Buren Magonigle was an American architect best known for his memorials.Born in New Jersey, Magonigle worked for Calvert Vaux, Rotch & Tilden and McKim Mead & White before opening his own practice in 1903...
(architect of the McKinley National Memorial and Mausoleum), Palmer, Hornbostel and Jones
Henry Hornbostel
Henry Hornbostel was an American architect.He designed more than 225 buildings, bridges, and monuments in the United States; currently 22 are listed on the National Register of Historic Places....
(a partner of which worked on the Queensboro Bridge
Queensboro Bridge
The Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge, also known as the 59th Street Bridge – because its Manhattan end is located between 59th and 60th Streets – or simply the Queensboro Bridge, is a cantilever bridge over the East River in New York City that was completed in 1909...
), J. L. Decker (a local architect in Niles), and Zantzinger, Borie and Medary
Zantzinger, Borie and Medary
Zantzinger, Borie and Medary was an early to mid-twentieth-century American architecture firm based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania specializing in institutional and civic projects, and active under that name from 1910 through 1929, and continuing until 1950. The partners were Clarence C. Zantzinger,...
(designers of the Detroit Institute of Arts
Detroit Institute of Arts
The Detroit Institute of Arts is a renowned art museum in the city of Detroit. In 2003, the DIA ranked as the second largest municipally owned museum in the United States, with an art collection valued at more than one billion dollars...
).
In 1915, the competition was concluded, and the $1,000 prize was awarded to McKim, Mead, and White
McKim, Mead, and White
McKim, Mead & White was a prominent American architectural firm at the turn of the twentieth century and in the history of American architecture. The firm's founding partners were Charles Follen McKim , William Rutherford Mead and Stanford White...
. Their design, somewhat typical of their other Beaux-Arts work, reflected Greek and Roman themes in all aspects, from architectural elements to the lettering on tablets and statuary. Indeed, the entire Memorial was described not unlike a temple of antiquity, with McKinley assuming the role of “household god”:
- “Seen from the approach on Main Street, the building will be dominated by its central feature, a colonnade or propylaea leading into a court of honor.
- It is this court, the atrium of the old Roman palaces where the statue of the household god stood, which is to be the climax of the entire structure.”
The library was divided into two stories, with space for open stacks and meeting rooms, including one reserved for McKinley memorabilia. The auditorium, notably, was originally designed with 200 fewer seats than originally called for, and was expressly not to be for “theatrical entertainments.”
McKinley’s statue, originally conceived as a bronze monument, was carved from a single thirty-five ton piece of marble by J. Massey Rhind
J. Massey Rhind
John Massey Rhind was a Scottish-American sculptor. Among Rhind's better known works is the marble statue of Dr. Crawford W. Long located in the National Statuary Hall Collection in Washington D.C...
.
Construction
The cornerstone of the Memorial was laid on November 20, 1915, and an inscribed plaque on it read “Erected 1915. To Perpetuate the Name and Achievements of William McKinley, Twenty-fifth President of the United States of America. Born January 29, 1843. Died September 14, 1901.” The United States Marine Band played “On the Beautiful Blue Danube” (a favorite of Mrs. McKinley’s) and “Lead Kindly Light” (reportedly a hymn sung at McKinley’s deathbed) after a parade of organizations to which McKinley belonged proceeded down Niles’ Main Street.John H. Parker Co. of New York oversaw the site’s construction.
Despite the Memorial Association’s specification for a granite structure, Georgia marble was used instead.
Dedication
Former President Taft (also an Ohio native), in a warmongerWarmonger
A warmonger is a pejorative term that is used to describe someone who is eager to encourage a people or nation to go to war.The term may also refer to:* Warmonger, a 2002 novel based on the Doctor Who television series...
ing speech encouraging entry into World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, praised McKinley at the Memorial’s dedication ceremonies on October 5, 1917. McKinley’s sister was on hand to unveil her brother’s twelve-foot statue, and Myron T. Herrick
Myron T. Herrick
Myron Timothy Herrick was a Republican politician from Ohio. He served as the 42nd Governor of Ohio.-Biography:...
, George B. Cortelyou
George B. Cortelyou
George Bruce Cortelyou was an American Presidential Cabinet secretary of the early 20th century.-Early life:...
, and Butler also spoke for the program.