Columbus Square (Providence)
Columbus Square is a historic public square in the Historic Elmwood Neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. It is located at the intersection of Elmwood Avenue and Reservoir Avenue. It serves as a gateway to Elmwood from the Reservoir and West End Neighborhoods.
History
The small triangular plot of land was originally owned by Joseph Cooke, who deeded to the Town of Cranston on May 24, 1824.[1] Cranston in turn deeded it to Providence in 1868.[1] It was renamed Columbus Park in 1893 in honor of a bronze statue of Columbus which was erected in on the small plot on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of Columbus's landing.[1]
Description
Columbus Square is the heart of the Elmwood Avenue business district that abuts the South Elmwood Historic District.[2] It is also home to nearby charter school, Paul Cuffee Upper School[3] and independent middle school Sophia Academy[4]
Columbus square is notable for its bronze statue, Columbus,[5] designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and cast in bronze in 1893 by the historic Gorham Manufacturing Company, which was located nearby on Adelaide Avenue.[6] The statue, of Christopher Columbus, is a recasting of a statue prepared in sterling silver by the Gorham company for the Columbian World's Fair in Chicago, 1893.[7] The statue is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is sited in Columbus Square Park, a public park of the City of Providence Parks Department.[8]
See also
References
- ^ a b c "Columbus statute in Columbus Square". Rhode Island Department of State. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
- ^ South Elmwood Historic District Map
- ^ Paul Cuffee Upper School
- ^ Sophia Academy
- ^ Public Memorials Columbus 1893
- ^ From Silver Spoons to Shell Casings - Gorham Manufacturing Company
- ^ Gorham MFG Co Sterling Silver for World's Columbian Fair, 1893
- ^ List of Providence Public Parks