Monday, June 14, 2021

Two Generations Ago

Tomorrow night, the Common Council will vote on a resolution authorizing the mayor and the commissioner of public works to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Friends of the Public Square (FOPS). The point of the proposed public-private partnership is to enhance and maintain Seventh Street Park. 

Whenever Seventh Street Park, a.k.a. the Public Square, is discussed, the fountain at the center of the park seems to be the principal topic. The public square was developed as a park in 1878. Five years later, in 1883, the fountain, which was the pride of the city, was added.  


In 1975, the original fountain, surmounted by a statue representing Venus rising from the sea, was disassembled and removed, and the fountain was reimagined as "Inspiration Fountain." The photograph below was taken in March 1975.

This photo, from the invaluable archive PhotobyGibson.com, shows Inspiration Fountain as it appeared upon its completion in June 1975. 

Although the original fountain is much to be preferred to the 1970s "Inspiration Fountain," it appears the reimagined fountain looked better when it was new than it does now.
COPYRIGHT 2021 CAROLE OSTERINK
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7 comments:

  1. P. WinslowJune 14, 2021 at 5:57 PM

    What a misnomer.

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  2. Cynthia LambertJune 14, 2021 at 6:15 PM

    Why, oh why, would they take the original fountain out? And the Inspiration fountain couldn't be less inspirational.

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  3. veggivetJune 14, 2021 at 6:31 PM

    "Urination Fountain" seems more appropriate...

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  4. adrianeschrammJune 15, 2021 at 6:03 PM

    Is the rumor true that the cage around the fountain is to deter bubble bathers?

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    Replies
    1. Carole OsterinkJune 15, 2021 at 6:48 PM

      Not bubble bathers, exactly. Some pranksters, back in the day, allegedly filled the fountain with detergent, and the second fence was erected to deter such nonsense.

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  5. man bites dogJune 16, 2021 at 6:25 PM

    Its 2021 how about getting the Tourist Board to fund something that they and they admirers can gather around and say we have changed Hudson forever. Of course there will be a plaque to thank Eric for the funding balance. In the end ,just another step closer to Gallowayville.

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  6. JCJune 18, 2021 at 1:47 PM

    My recollection was that Inspiration Fountain was a gift from Tom Kuolos and the Kiwanis Club , which gave it the name. When they were installing the lights they realized they electrified the water so the first set of bars were installed . Later they realized kids could stick their hands into the water between the bars so the outer fence was installed .

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