Phoenixville Civil War Centennial Memorial Renewal Project

Background

Since 2021, our Public Memory Renewal Team has been in conversation with the Borough of Phoenixville about our proposal to renew and revise our local Civil War Centennial Memorial, which was dedicated in Reeves Park during the Dogwood Festival in May 1963. The current monument features 3 major components, all enclosed in a small house at the southwest corner of Reeves Park: 

1) The Griffen Gun, a cannon designed and manufactured in Phoenixville that gave the Union a technical edge in munitions; 

2) a mural painted by famed local painter Joseph C. Hennesy, which depicts a white Union soldier and white Confederate soldier walking arm-in-arm with a white woman as siblings; 

3) a prose poem (pictured above) that describes the scene as a family reunion. 

Our Vision

Designed in the early 1960s, our Centennial Memorial follows guidance from the original Federal Centennial Commission (that link will take you to a scan of the Federal Guide for Centennial Observance stored in Dr. Tim Dougherty’s WCU google drive) by emphasizing Phoenixville’s local significance to the War Effort through the Griffen Gun produced by the  Phoenix Iron Company. The memorial also emphasizes a metaphor of familial unity, which echoes the language of the 2nd Commission Chairman, Dr. Allan Nevins, when he took over the Chairman role in 1961 (see his quotation on p. 13 of the Centennial Commission Report).  
 
Both of these emphases are laudable, but they are incomplete when they erase the contributions of African Americans to their own emancipation and their participation in the war effort as soldiers for the Union. We propose a renewal effort that will spotlight contributions of Black Phoenixville residents like Samuel Greene, who fought in the Civil War, while also allowing us to remember the historic effort of our community to build this monument in 1963. To check out the full proposal we brought before the Phoenixville Parks and Recreation Committee in May 2021, please click here. 

Timeline & Process

 
  • December 2020 – We presented our idea to Phoenixville’s Beautification Advisory Committee (BAC), chaired by Lou Beccaria at the time. It was well received and we were encouraged to keep working on it. The BAC endorsed our project to present to the Parks and Recreation Committee.
  • May 2021 – We presented our proposal to the Parks and Recreation Committee. We were told that the Parks and Recreation Committee supports our project on the condition that we find a proper place to store and/or display Hennesy’s original painting. We put the project on hiatus as we navigated major health challenges for 3 of our 4 founding committee members. 
  • May 2024 – We presented an update memo to the Parks and Recreation committee about the outcome of our attempts to find a new home for the painting. We also give an update on our ideas for the art revision and the landscaping. We are told that the Parks and Recreation Committee supports our idea, but wants to see some additional details before they can officially endorse it.
  • May 2026 – We presented an updated abridged proposal to the Parks and Recreation Committee, emphasizing that Diversity in Action~Phoenixville will raise all funds. There was lively discussion, and it was tabled for the June meeting so that new members could look more closely at our proposal materials. 
 
We look forward to working with the Borough on this community project, and making a revision that represents our entire community. To join our efforts, please email Dr. Tim Dougherty.
 

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