Mecham Fountain

Location: Petaluma, CA, USA

A 19^th century local philanthropist, Harrison Mecham of Stony Point, donated a cast iron drinking fountain to Petaluma in 1891. It was installed at the southwest corner of Main and Washington Streets on the 6^th of May. Standing 15 feet 3 inches high and surmounted by a semi-nude statue of the Greek mythological cupbearer, Hebe, it became a controversial work of art.

The statue was destroyed following a mysterious explosion and subsequent fire in the Derby building on Main and Washington streets in 22 February 1893. (The fire which started in the rear of the Washington Hotel was fanned by wind and quickly destroyed a block of buildings in the downtown.) Although the blast blew the head off the statue it remained in situ until 11 Apr 1893 when it was subsequently replaced.

In August 1913 the Women’s Christian Temperance Union complained about the display of nude paintings in a shop window. When the Chief of Police ordered them removed, the shop owner turned all but one to the wall. He then draped “September Morn” by Paul Chabas in a blue gown which triggered a prankster to promptly wrap the statue of Hebe in calico.

Courtesy the Sonoma County Library. Source:
https://digital.sonomalibrary.org/digital/collection/p15763coll2/id/8559

The following month on 6 September, the statue fell from the drinking fountain shattering both arms and a leg leaving an ankle and foot attached to the pedestal. The bronze statue was carted off to the corporation yards, and an analysis into the cause of the accident uncovered that one of the internal metal supports had broken, and the other could not support the strain (it is quite possible that the prankster who clambered over the statue caused the support to break). The statue was henceforth repaired and reinstalled on 18 Mar 1915.

In 1925 the fountain was moved, with permission by the grandson of the donor and the city council, to the northwest corner of Main & Washington streets in front of the Sonoma County National Bank.

Although there was a plan to move the Mecham fountain with its statue of Hebe to the Hill Plaza on 30 November 1927, it was decided at the last minute that it would replace the old fountain in Walnut Park. It was placed in the centre of the park facing the bandstand. The statue of Hebe was put into storage in Wickersham Park where it remained for many years until it was removed to the city dump circa 1960-61.

The cast iron structure, manufactured by J. L. Mott Iron Works of New York, was seated on an octagonal stone plinth. The base supported eight panels, three of which offered demi lune basins decorated with laurel leaves into which dolphin mascarons spouted water. A small stone step was positioned beneath the basin to assist children or smaller adults.

An attic base supported a short square central column with four inset panels bound by pilasters. Each panel offered bas-relief containing an orb encircled by flourish. A dedication plaque was placed on the south side in raised letters: Gift of H. Mecham to the City of Petaluma.

The capital supported a 5’ 3” high statue of Hebe, the Cup bearer to the Gods in Greek mythology. She poured water from a pitcher raised high in her right hand into a goblet in her left hand. This particular model, cast in bronze from a design by the sculptor Antonio Canova, was naked above the waist.

Glossary

• Attic base, a column base with two rings
• Bas relief
• capital
• Demi lune
• mascaron
• Pilaster, a column form that is only ornamental and not supporting a structure
• Plinth, flat base usually projecting, upon which a pedestal, wall or column rests

The Willard Fountain

Location: Kankakee, Illinois, USA

In 1912 the Kankakee County Chapter of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union raised funds to erect a drinking fountain to serve the needs of human and animals. Installed on the southeast corner of Indiana Avenue and Court Street, a formal unveiling took place on Sept. 11, 1913 dedicated to W.C.T.U. founder Frances Willard who had been a schoolteacher in the town in 1859.

Sadly, the fountain was demolished on 2 November 1955 when a truck jumped the curb on Indiana Avenue and struck the fountain damaging it beyond repair.

The drinking fountain was manufactured by J. W. Fiske & Company of New York City. An octagonal base seated on an octagonal plinth, this structure contained two small basins at ground level for the use of dogs. At the front of the fountain located between two cornices was an inset panel for dedication.

Two demi- lune fluted basins for human consumption were available in the front and rear of the structure. Drinking water was released via a bubbler which formed a concave shape, known as a bubbling cup, to hold water. A large horse trough decorated with bas-relief faced the street. A ball cock maintained the level of water in the trough, and a shield which was open at the bottom protected the float valve and ball cock from damage by horses.

Cusped arch side panels contained an elaborate design with a rosette cartouche. The capital, edged with acanthus frieze, supported two abacus of different sizes and a short pedestal decorated with bas relief in the form of reeds and a crest. Elaborate consoles offered light from globe lanterns.

The structure terminated with a classical statue of the Greek Goddess Hebe based on the 1806 sculpture by Berthel Thorvaldsen. Hebe was the daughter of Zeus and Hera, a Greek goddess of Youth and Spring who proffered the cup of immortality at the table of the gods. Dressed in flowing robes gathered at the waist, her head was tilted down and to the left, and her hair was held by a headband or ribbon. Her left leg was bent and her weight was on her right leg. (This stance is called contrapposto, where one leg bears the weight and the other leg is relaxed.) She held a pitcher with a lowered right hand at her thigh and a cup in her raised left hand with her gaze focusing on it.

Source: https://www.daily-journal.com/news/local/jack-klasey-a-tale-of-two-fountains/

Source: https://www.daily-journal.com/news/local/jack-klasey-a-tale-of-two-fountains/

Glossary:

• Abacus, at the top of a capital, a thick rectangular slab of stone that serves as the flat, broad surface
• Acanthus, one of the most common plant forms (deeply cut leaves) to make foliage ornament and decoration
• Bas-relief, sculpted material that has been raised from the background to create a slight projection from the surface
• Capital, the top of a column that supports the load bearing down on it
• Cartouche, a structure or figure, often in the shape of an oval shield or oblong scroll, used as an architectural or graphic ornament or to bear a design or inscription.
• Console, a decorative bracket support element
• Contrapposto, stance where one leg bears the weight and the other leg is relaxed
• Cornice, a molding or ornamentation that projects from the top of a building
• Cusped Arch, the point of intersection of two ornamental arcs or curves, such as the inner points of a trefoil
• Demi-lune, half moon or crescent shape
• Fluted, a long rounded groove
• Frieze, the horizontal part of a classical moulding just below the cornice, often decorated with carvings
• Pedestal, an architectural support for a column or statue
• Plinth, flat base usually projecting, upon which a pedestal, wall or column rests.