On a walk up to Boathouse Row the other day, I spied this interesting park. The Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial was designed by Paul Phillipe Cret. He also designed the Rodin Museum, Ben Franklin Bridge, the original plans for the Ben Franklin Parkway and the redesign of Rittenhouse Square.
Construction started in 1929 and finished after Cret’s death in 1945 by his firm Harbeson, Hough, Livingston and Larson. All three terraces were completed by 1961. They were funded through the bequest of philanthropist Ellen Phillips Samuel. “Samuel’s wish was to create a series of sculptures representing the history of American from the earliest settlers to the modern era.”
Do you think Cret and Samuel achieved that goal?
Construction started in 1929 and finished after Cret’s death in 1945 by his firm Harbeson, Hough, Livingston and Larson. All three terraces were completed by 1961. They were funded through the bequest of philanthropist Ellen Phillips Samuel. “Samuel’s wish was to create a series of sculptures representing the history of American from the earliest settlers to the modern era.”
Do you think Cret and Samuel achieved that goal?