“The Ruins” combines several of my favorite things: parks, fountains, statues, and architecture. One thing you can say about Indianapolis is that we have some very lovely parks. The Ruins are located in on of my favorite parks in town, Holliday Park. I spent so much time there when my son was young. It has a wonderful playground, a nature center, and many hiking trails. Perfect for burning off the excess energy of an active boy! Also a perfect place to take photographs.
The Ruins have a fascinating history. in 1898, New York’s first skyscraper, the St. Paul building had been built. It was located at 220 Broadway. One of the outstanding architectural sculptors of the day, Karl Bitter,designed the façade of this building as well as that of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. On this façade were three massive statues made of Indiana limestone. The statues, called “the Races of Man” representedthe African-American, Asian and Caucasian races laboring together as they appeared to hold the skyscraper on their backs. In the 1950’s the owners of this building, the Western Electric Corporation, decided to build a modern skyscraper on the site. Seeking to find a new home for the sculptures, they held a competition among cities for a plan to display and preserve them. Indianapolis among other cities and universities, presented a plan: to place them in Holliday park.The design submitted and later implemented by this city was a reproduction of the façade of the building’s entry including original facing stone, doorways and the ledge that upheld the figures, each one of which weighed 8 tons.
Last week I heard a story on my local NPR radio station that mentioned The Ruins. Over the years they had fallen into disrepair, but a rejuvenation project has just been completed. I think it’s time to re-visit one of my favorite places in town. I’ll even make sure to bring my camera. 🙂
September 26, 2016
Interesting that all the years I lived in the Indy area I never visited this park. Or any of the parks except the one in Noblesville!
September 27, 2016
It really is a lovely park. So nice for a walk or a picnic. They used to have Orchard in Bloom there- a big flower and patio show, but I can’t remember if that was when you still lived here. Miss you!