The Drake Fountain, also known as the Columbus Monument, is located on a triangular site bounded by 92nd Street, South Chicago Avenue and Exchange Avenue in the

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

neighborhood known as

South Chicago South Chicago, formerly known as Ainsworth, is one of the 77 community areas of Chicago, Illinois. This chevron-shaped community is one of Chicago's 16 lakefront neighborhoods near the southern rim of Lake Michigan 10 miles south of downtow ...

History

John B. Drake, owner of the city's Grand Pacific Hotel and later the

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals and creatures * A male duck * Drake (mythology), a term related to and often synonymous with dragon People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family ...

and Blackstone Hotels, gave the fountain to the residents so those in The Loop would have chilled drinking water. The structure was designed by

Richard Henry Park Richard Henry Park (also Richard Hamilton Park; February 17, 1838—November 7, 1902) was an American sculptor who worked in marble and bronze. He was commissioned to do work by the wealthy of the nineteenth century. He did a marble bust of John ...

and originally stood on Washington Street adjacent to Chicago City Hall. The monument was dedicated in December 1892 to the 400th anniversary of the first voyage of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

. In 1906, it was moved to LaSalle Street and, in 1909, to its present site.

Architecture

The fountain is composed of granite and designed in the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

style. It consists of a square column with a pyramidal cap on a

quatrefoil A quatrefoil (anciently caterfoil) is a decorative element consisting of a symmetrical shape which forms the overall outline of four partially overlapping circles of the same diameter. It is found in art, architecture, heraldry and traditional ...

base. The column and cap are ornamented with classical columns and other carvings. At each corner of the column is a

flying buttress The flying buttress (''arc-boutant'', arch buttress) is a specific form of buttress composed of a ramping arch that extends from the upper portion of a wall to a pier of great mass, to convey to the ground the lateral forces that push a wall ou ...

which rises behind a large circular basin. The basins originally were drinking fountains and were chilled by ice blocks placed in the monument's base but currently serve as planters. The chambers under the fountain were large enough to accommodate two-tons of ice. A bronze statue of Christopher Columbus stands in front of the column on a square granite base. Columbus is depicted during his university days and holds a globe in his left hand and a compass in his right. Above the statue is a bronze plaque stating ''ICE WATER FOUNTAIN GIFT OF JOHN B. DRAKE TO THE CITY OF CHICAGO 1892''. The fountain was refurbished in 1986 and became a Chicago landmark on March 10, 2004. It was rededicated on October 8, 2004.

Removal of Christopher Columbus statue

On July 31, 2020, the Drake Fountain Columbus statue, which was also the last

monument in Chicago, was removed for an undisclosed period. The Mayor's office released a statement claiming "Following public safety concerns over planned demonstrations similar to the one in Grant Park two weeks ago, the city has temporarily relocated the Christopher Columbus statue at Drake Fountain in the South Chicago neighborhood until further notice.”

References

Fountains in Illinois Chicago Landmarks Granite sculptures in Illinois Bronze sculptures in Illinois Outdoor sculptures in Chicago

Statues removed in 2020 {{Chicago-struct-stub

History

Architecture

Removal of Christopher Columbus statue

See also

References