Monument to Friedrich Hecker - Benton Park - St. Louis, MO
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 38° 35.830 W 090° 13.321
15S E 741929 N 4275736
Vary nice, very large park which lends its name to the Benton Park Neighborhood
Waymark Code: WMMK5M
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 10/01/2014
Views: 1
County of monument: St. Louis Independent City
Location of park: bordered by S. Jefferson Ave., Arsenal St., Wyoming St. & Illinois Ave.
Location of monument: Wyoming St. side, near Illinois Ave., Benton Park, St. Louis
Artist: Charles Steubenraugh, sculptor
Architect: Ernest C. Janssen, Ernest C.
Contractor: Hurricane Granite Company
Proper Description: "Monument to Friedrich Hecker in the form of an obelisk decorated with medallions, torches, and stars. One of the medallions formerly featured a bronze bust of Hecker in high relief, which is now missing." ~ Smithsonian American Art Museum
Remarks: "Donated by Hecker Monument Association. Cost: $5,000. Friedrich Hecker was a German revolutionist who came to St. Louis in the 1840s. Hecker commanded a brigade of local German-Americans during the Civil War. Charles Steubenraugh was the sculptor of the portrait of Hecker, which is now missing." ~ Smithsonian American Art Museum
Historic information via Wikipedia
"Philosopher and writer Friedrick Hecker (1811-1881) came to this country as a refugee of the failed German Revolution of 1848 that was fought to establish a democratic republic. In Cincinnati, Hecker founded the first U.S. Turner Society, a social organization promoting gymnastics and education. Hecker served as an officer in the Civil War, and his many contributions in Germany to the German-American community are celebrated in this bust. The pedestal inscription translates, "With Word and Deed for the Freedom of the People in the Old and New Fatherlands."" ~ A Guide to Public Art in Cincinnati