Philadelphia Public Art @philart.net

Tour: Kelly Drive

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The Kelly Drive tour begins at Kelly and Fairmount, along the side of the drive across from the Art Museum, crossing at Lincoln's statue and then out along the Drive. This tour is approximately 4 kilometers round trip. For purposes of location, "river side" refers to the side of the drive adjacent to the Art Museum/river/path. "Other side" refers to the other side of the drive, and "center" refers to sculptures located on traffic islands. In stretches there is a path on the other side, but crossing the drive on foot is a problematic exercise that should be approached with the utmost caution. On the other hand, should you choose to make the trip by car, you will find it difficult to view the pieces on the river side. Your best bet is some form of human-powered wheeled transportation, such as a bicycle.

Tiger at Bay
Albino Manca, 1965
* tiger
* Also listed as "Tiger"
* Kelly Drive, just West of Fairmount, across from the Azalea Garden.
* 39.968425,-75.182165 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+askart.com's Albino Manca page




Silenus and the Infant Bacchus
Praxiteles, 1885 (cast of 400 BC original)
* Statue of Bacchus and Silenus
* two people, one standing, one carried
* Artist is an "attribution"
* Kelly Drive, past Fairmount.
* 39.968730,-75.182725 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Religious
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Praxiteles page
+wikipedia.org's Bacchus/Dionysus page
+wikipedia.org's Silenus page




The Wedges
Robert Morris, 1970
* geometric forms
* Northeast from Kelly Drive and Sedgely Drive.
* 39.970075,-75.184175 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Robert Morris page




Abraham Lincoln
Randolph Rogers, 1871
* Statue of Abraham Lincoln
* big seated person, chair, quill, book, eagles, federal and city seals
* Moved in January 2002 from the middle of Kelly Drive to the North side.
* inscription:
front:
To Abraham Lincoln from a grateful people
left:
With malice towards none, with charity towards all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us finish the work we are in
back:
Let us here highly resolve that the government of the people. by the people, and for the people shall not perish from this earth
right:
I do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within the states in rebellion are and hence forth shall be free
* Kelly Drive and Sedgely Drive.
* 39.969550,-75.184500 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Moved
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Randolph Rogers page
+wikipedia.org's Abraham Lincoln page




The Pilgrim
Augustus Saint-Gaudens, 1904
* standing person, hat, Bible, walking stick
* Other side of Kelly Drive at Lemon Hill Drive.
* 39.970100,-75.188660 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Favorites, Religious
* See also:
+saint-gaudens.org page for this piece
+phillyhistory.org 1912 picture of this piece outside City Hall on a different base
+Saint-Gaudens National Historical Site




Stone Age In America
John J. Boyle, 1877
* mother and children, mother standing, children crouching and carried, wolf, axe
* Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.971975,-75.190250 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Favorites
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's John J. Boyle page




The Puritan
Harry Rosin, 1942
* standing person, gun
* South Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.972375,-75.190360 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Religious
* See also:
+michenermuseum.org's Harry Rosin page




Settling of the Seaboard
Wheeler Williams, 1942
* Quotes from William Penn and Alexander Whitaker
* group of people, standing, sitting, trees, turkey
* inscription:
front:
I have great love and regard towards you and desire to win and gain your love and friendship by a kind, just and peacable life and the people I send are of the same mind and shall in all things behave themselves accordingly.
-William Penn to the Indians
If we consider the almost miraculous beginning and continuance of this plantation we must needs confess that God hath opened this passage unto us and led us by the hand unto this work.
-Aleaxander Whitaker
back:
We yield unfeigned thanks and and praise
for the return of seed-time and harvest
for the increase of the ground
and the gathering in of the fruits thereof
and for all other blessings
of Thy merciful providence
bestowed upon this nation and people
-The Book of Common Prayer
A Land is Settled
* South Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.972440,-75.190360 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Religious
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Wheeler Williams page
+wikipedia.org's William Penn page
+wikipedia.org's Alexander Whitaker page




The Quaker
Harry Rosin, 1942
* standing person, Bible, hat
* South Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.972525,-75.190360 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Religious
* See also:
+michenermuseum.org's Harry Rosin page




The Revolutionary Soldier
Erwin Frey, 1943
* standing person, hat, gun
* South Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.972675,-75.190450 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: War
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Erwin Frey page




The Birth of a Nation
Henry Kreis, 1943
* Quote from George Washington
* cannon, group of people standing, eagle, idea
* inscription:
front:
We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unaliable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
-Declaration of Independence
back:
The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered as deeply as finally staked on the experiment intrusted to the hands of the American people.
-First Inaugural of George Washington
A Nation is Formed
* South Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.972750,-75.190490 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+medallicartcollector.com's Henry Kreis page
+wikipedia.org's George Washington page




The Statesman
Erwin Frey, 1943
* standing person
* South Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.972800,-75.190490 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Erwin Frey page




The Miner
John B. Flannagan, 1938
* crouching person, miner's tools
* inscription: They searched the earth for treasure.
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973375,-75.190850 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Labor
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's John Bernard Flannagan page




Spanning the Continent
Robert Laurent, 1937
* two people standing, farm implement, bonnet
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973275,-75.190700 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Robert Laurent page




The Ploughman
J. Wallace Kelly, 1938
* kneeling person
* inscription: They broke the land for harvest.
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973425,-75.190700 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Labor
* See also:
+michenermuseum.org's J. Wallace Kelly Page




The Spirit of Enterprise
Jacques Lipchitz, 1950 - 1960
* Quote from Theodore Roosevelt
* big eagle, snake, person leaning forward
* inscription: Our nation glorious in youth and strength looks into the future with fearless and eager eyes as vigorous as a young man to run a race. -Theodore Roosevelt
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973600,-75.190875 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Favorites
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Jacque Lipchitz page
+wikipedia.org's Theodore Roosevelt page




Central Terrace Medallions
* small urn, sitting person, plants, snakes, weapons, mirror, clouds, flames, sun, lion, standing person, headgear, books, owl, hand, ship, flag
* inscription: Justitia, Prudentia, Amor Patriea, Abundantia, Potestas
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973600,-75.190800 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Unidentified




The Slave
Helene Sardeau, 1940
* kneeling person
* inscription: Their bands have broken asunder.
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973775,-75.191060 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Black Lives, Labor
* See also:
+Smithsonian archives photograph of Helene Sardeau in her studio




Welcoming to Freedom
Maurice Sterne, 1939
* Quotes from William Cullen Bryant and Abraham Lincoln
* two people, one standing, one sitting
* inscription:
With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right. As God gives us to see the right, let us strive to finish the work we are in.
- Abraham Lincoln
Here the free spirit of mankind at length throws its first fetters off and who shall place a limit to the giant's unchained strength, or curb his swiftness in the forward race.
- William Cullen Bryant
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973885,-75.191000 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Maurice Sterne page
+wikipedia.org's William Cullen Bryant page
+wikipedia.org's Abraham Lincoln page




The Immigrant
Heinz Warneke, 1940
* kneeling person, staff
* inscription: They came seeking freedom
* Central Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.973800,-75.190925 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+Heinz Warneke papers at Syracuse University




James A. Garfield Monument
Augustus Saint-Gaudens, 1895
* Monument to James A. Garfield
* standing person, head, eagle, olive branch, sword and shield
* inscription:
E. Plurbius Unum
MDCCCXXXI
MDCCCLXXXI
James Abram Garfield
President of the United States
MDCCCLXXXI
* Other side of Kelly Drive, near the Girard Avenue Bridge.
* 39.973900,-75.190550 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+Saint-Gaudens National Historical Site
+wikipedia.org's James A. Garfield page




The Laborer
Ahron Ben-Shmuel, 1958
* standing person wearing a helmet
* inscription: He wrought miracles
* North Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.974425,-75.191400 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Labor
* See also:
+michenermuseum.org's Ahron Ben-Shmuel page




The Poet
Jose de Creeft, 1954
* standing person, scroll
* inscription: He shaped our dreams.
* North Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.974350,-75.191425 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+wikipedia.org Jose de Creeft page




The Preacher
Waldemar Raemisch, 1952
* standing person
* inscription: He guided our ways
* North Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.974675,-75.191625 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Religious
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Waldemar Raemisch page




The Scientist
Khoren der Harootian, 1955
* standing person
* inscription: He weighed the stars.
* North Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.974610,-75.191475 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+derharootian.com




The Hand and Eye of God
J. Wallace Kelly, 1959
* eye and hand, tools
* The title is from the James A. Michener Art Museum's web site. Public Art in Philadelphia says "Titles Unknown."
* Stair Posts. North Terrace Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial. Kelly Drive, past Boat House Row.
* 39.974550,-75.191400 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+michenermuseum.org's J. Wallace Kelly Page




Cowboy
Frederic Remington, 1908
* seated person, hat, horse
* Other side of Kelly Drive past the Girard Avenue Bridge.
* 39.977740,-75.193860 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Labor
* See also:
+phillyhistory.org 1910 picture of this piece
+Max Buten's picture of this piece
+Frederic Remington Art Museum




Playing Angels
Carl Milles, 1950
* vertical angels, musical instruments
* Kelly Drive and Fountain Green Drive.
* 39.980225,-75.198840 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Favorites, Religious
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Carl Milles page




General Ulysses S. Grant
Daniel Chester French, Edward Clark Potter, 1897
* Statue of Ulysses S. Grant
* seated person, hat, horse
* Kelly Drive and Fountain Green Drive.
* 39.980790,-75.197900 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: War
* See also:
+Chesterwood: home of Daniel Chester French
+wikipedia.org's Edward Clark Potter page
+wikipedia.org's Ulysses S. Grant page




Schuylkill Navy War Memorial
1950
* small Schuylkill Navy logo, seahorses, oars, hand, triton
* inscription:
This Grandstand is dedicated to the memory of oarsmen who made the supreme sacrifice.
World War I, World War II.
Erected by the Schuylkill Navy, July 4, 1950
* Wall. Schuylkill Grandstand. River side of Kelly Drive.
* 39.985540,-75.202425 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: War
* See also:
+Schuylkill Navy




John J. Carlin Tablet
1968 (approximate)
* Relief bust of John J. Carlin
* small head, eyeglasses
* inscription:
This tablet was erected by
oarsmen of the rowing world
in honor of
John J. Carlin
1896 - 1968
Circa 1914-1968
He was a man dedicated to the amateur sport of rowing and devoted 54 years to its development and leadership encompassing
All phases:- schoolboy, club, college, national, international, and olympic.
Treasurer - Schoolboy R.A. of A.
President - Fairmount R.A.
Coach - University of Pennsylvania
Commodore - Schuylkill Navy
Chairman - Gold Cup Committee
President - N.A.A.O.
Chairman - U.S. Olympic and Pan-Am Rowing Committee
Continental Representative of F.I.S.A.
Oarsmen of the past, present, and future have and will benefit from his vigor and zeal.
* Wall. Schuylkill Grandstand. River side of Kelly Drive.
* 39.985900,-75.201985 [map] [nearby]




John B. Kelly
Harry Rosin, 1965
* Statue of John B. Kelly
* seated person, boat, water
* This is the father of the Kelly for whom the drive was named
* inscription: Olympic Champion Singles 1920, Doubles 1920, Doubles 1924
* North end of the Schuylkill Grandstand. River side of Kelly Drive.
* 39.986050,-75.201800 [map] [nearby]
* Exhibits: Athletic
* See also:
+michenermuseum.org's Harry Rosin page
+wikipedia.org's Jack Kelly page




Frank Furness Gate
Frank Furness (Architect), 1876 (relocated 1886)
* arch, plants
* This piece is in very bad condition. The artist is listed elsewhere as an attribution. Reservoir Drive is labeled Strawberry Mansion Drive on Google.
* Gateway. Other side of Kelly Drive, North of Reservoir Drive.
* 39.995500,-75.191600 [map] [nearby]
* See also:
+wikipedia.org's Frank Furness page


Possible trip extension:West Park (in reverse: up to Falls Bridge and half way back again on the other side)

See Also

+Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia
+ushistory.org's Samuel Memorial tour page