FEATURE image: Brigadier General Gouverneur Kemble Warren (1888) by Karl Gerhardt. Gettysburg National Military Park. Author’s photograph. April 2006.
Gettysburg. April 2006. Author’s photograph.
One of Gettysburg’s most famous statues among the park’s many hundreds of monuments, markers and plaques, Gouverneur (his first name, not his title) Kemble Warren (1830-1882) was a civil engineer and U.S Army general from New York. The statue, by Karl Gerhardt (1853-1940) was dedicated in 1888 and is on Little Round Top. Karl Gerhardt was an American sculptor who is famous for the death mask of President U.S. Grant in 1885.
Artwork subject; Brigadier General Gouverneur Kemble Warren during the Civil War. Public Domain.
The artist; Karl Gerhardt (1853-1940) around 1880. Public Domain.
At this spot, on July 2, 1863, General Warren, commander of the Second Army Corps (part of the Army of the Potomac) and its chief engineer, detected Confederate General John Hood’s flanking movement and, recognizing the importance of the undefended position on the left flank of the U.S. Army, directed on his own initiative, the brigade of Colonel Strong Vincent (1837-1863) from Pennsylvania to occupy it minutes before it was attacked. While this action saved the key Union position on Cemetery Ridge, Col. Vincent was carried off the field mortally wounded and died at a nearby farm on July 7, 1863.
Colonel Strong Vincent (1837-1863). Public Domain.
The statue was dedicated by veterans of the 5th New York Infantry Regiment (Duryee’s Zouaves). While Little Round Top is famous for the fighting on July 2, 1863, seven men were also killed around these rocks on the morning of July 3, 1863.
FEATURE Image: The Worker, Willow Springs, Illinois. June 2018. Author’s photograph 6mb.The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) stands as one of the most successful and far-reaching initiatives of FDR’s New Deal, providing vital economic relief during the Great Depression while leaving a permanent legacy of environmental conservation and infrastructural development that is beautifully commemorated today by The Worker statue in Willow Springs, Illinois.
FDR’s “Tree Army” Arrives in Illinois
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a cornerstone program of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, engineered to combat the devastating economic and social effects of the Great Depression. Affectionately dubbed “Mr. Roosevelt’s Tree Army,” the initiative established over 50 camps and launched more than 1,000 special projects across Illinois.
The camp at Willow Springs was among the very first wave of camps established under FDR’s vision. According to the Civilian Conservation Corps Legacy, Camp Chicago-Lemont, Company 612 officially opened its doors in Willow Springs on June 4, 1933.
Commemorating the Legacy of Company 612
To honor the unwavering dedication and work ethic of the young men—aged 17 to 28—who served in the CCC, a commemorative monument was dedicated on June 3, 2001. This larger-than-life bronze sculpture, titled The Worker, stands proudly at the intersection of Archer Avenue (Route 171) and Willow Boulevard in the Willow Springs Woods. Today, it serves as a striking local landmark and stands as one of many identical tribute statues scattered across the American landscape to honor the enduring spirit of the CCC.
A Blueprint for Economic Relief
As one of the New Deal’s most successful “alphabet soup” agencies, the CCC served a critical, multi-faceted purpose. Its immediate motivation was to combat staggering national unemployment rates that soared to 25% following the catastrophic Wall Street crash of October 1929. By providing meaningful manual labor jobs to young men, the program injected vital financial relief directly into struggling families who had spent years facing severe economic hardship.
Established on June 4, 1933, Civilian Conservation Corps Legacy, Camp Chicago-Lemont, Company 612 was one of the nation’s very first CCC camps located in Willow Springs, Illinois.
The Worker portrays a young man standing firmly atop a stone plinth in a setting of forest greenery. He is depicted with a muscular, bare chest, rolled-up work trousers, and heavy boots, capturing the demanding nature of manual field labor required for $30 a month government salary. In his right hand, he holds a standard planting spade or shovel resting on the ground, while his left hand holds a cloth work cap against his hip. His facial expression is determined and forward-looking, wearing a wide-brimmed campaign hat. June 2018. Author’s photograph. 6mb DSC_9132 (1)
This specific monument—dedicated on June 3, 2001—stands as a lasting local and national reminder of how manual civic labor rescued a generation of American boys from urban poverty while structurally rebuilding the country’s natural landscape. June 2018. Author’s photograph. 12.87mb.
CCC plaque, Willow Springs, Illinois. June 2013. Author’s photograph. 3.33mb
Life in the Camps and the $30 Promise
As the program expanded, camps quickly proliferated across every state in the nation. Over its nine years and three months of operation, the CCC employed upwards of three million young men. In exchange for their manual conservation labor, enrollees received essential provisions: food, clothing, lodging, and both medical and dental care.
They were also given a paycheck of $30 a month (equivalent to roughly $600 today), with a strict legal caveat: $25 of that sum had to be sent directly home to support their struggling families. Each camp housed around 200 men. While the lifestyle was notoriously basic and disciplined, for most enrollees, it was a far better alternative to panhandling on city streets. Consequently, the program enjoyed immense public and bipartisan support.
FDR during a presidential radio broadcast in 1933. Library of Congress. Public Domain.
The First 100 Days and the Mobilization of a Nation
The legislative foundation for the program began during the famous Emergency Session of the 73rd Congress, which FDR called on March 9, 1933, just days after taking office. Roosevelt boldly promised that if granted emergency powers, he would mobilize 250,000 men into field camps by the end of July. Senate Bill S. 598 was introduced on March 27, passed both houses swiftly, and was signed into law on March 31—less than a month into FDR’s first term.
The initiative faced early friction from Big Labor leaders, who worried this massive influx of non-union workers would undercut the private job market. Undeterred, the Roosevelt administration went ahead with a peacetime mobilization of men, materials, and transportation on a scale never before seen in American history. On April 15, 1933, Executive Order 6101 officially authorized the program, appointing labor leader Robert Fechner as its first director. Backed by an advisory council spanning the War, Labor, Agriculture, and Interior departments, the CCC became a hallmark achievement of FDR’s legendary “First 100 Days.”
Transforming the American Landscape
Operating primarily on public and government-owned rural lands, the federal program left a permanent environmental and physical mark on the country. CCC workers are widely credited with saving and renewing America’s decimated timberlands, planting an astonishing three billion trees between 1933 and 1942. Simultaneously, their labor laid the groundwork for modern infrastructure by building parks, fire towers, and access roads where none had existed before.
Despite its overwhelming popularity, the CCC came to an abrupt end following the attack on Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into World War II. With the establishment of the military draft and the rapid wartime mobilization of domestic manufacturing, the economic need for government-subsidized labor relief evaporated. By mid-1942, the final CCC camps were dismantled or repurposed as training grounds for the U.S. Army.
A Lasting Legacy in Illinois
With the exceptions of Social Security and the Rural Electrification Act, few New Deal programs have matched the profound, long-term influence of the CCC. In Illinois alone, the historical impact remains staggering. Over 92,000 men served within the state’s borders. Through their hard work, they successfully planted an estimated 60 million trees, constructed 400 bridges, cleared 1,200 miles of public trails, and installed nearly 5,000 flood-control structures that continue to shape the state’s parks and forest preserves today.
The historical setting of The Worker statue in Willow Springs, Illinois, standing as a permanent tribute to the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). highlights the intersection of public memory, art, and the natural landscape that the CCC boys worked so hard to preserve during the Great Depression.
The Worker statue, Illinois Rte. 171 (Archer Avenue) in Willow Springs, Illinois. June 2013. Author’s photograph. 5.61mb
This exact site commemorates Camp Chicago-Lemont (Company 612), which was officially established on June 4, 1933, as one of the very first emergency New Deal camps in Illinois. The rustic limestone wall holding up the statue is highly symbolic. Constructing stone retaining walls, bridges, and erosion-control barriers was exactly the type of heavy manual labor the CCC boys performed across the state’s forest preserves.
McDonald, Jerry. “The Story of the CCC and Its Legacy in Illinois.” Illinois Country Living Magazine, January 2018. Accessed May 16, 2023. https://icl.coop/story-ccc-legacy-illinois/.
FEATURE image: The large bronze statue was the first prominent public depiction of the 16th U.S. president as a young adult man. June 2017. Author’s photograph. 4.70mb.
Capt. A. Lincoln stands watch over the Rock River in Dixon, Illinois. Unveiled in 1930 on the historic grounds of Fort Dixon, Leonard Crunelle’s statue captures a 23-year-old Lincoln during his frontier deployment in the 1832 Black Hawk War. Enlisting in the Illinois Volunteers on April 21, Lincoln served through consecutive re-enlistments as both a captain and a private before officially mustering out on July 10, 1832. June 2017. Author’s photograph. 8.26mb.
The Changing Illinois Frontier
In the early 1830s, Illinois marked the edge of the American frontier, existing virtually as an untamed wilderness. By the end of the 1820s, treaties with the federal government had forced the expulsion of most Native American tribes from the state’s northern tier, which had been established in 1818.
This displacement rapidly transformed the landscape. A massive wave of Eastern settlers arrived throughout the 1840s and 1850s, bringing ambitious commercial infrastructure in their wake. Driven by newly carved transportation canals and an expansive network of railroads, these projects successfully connected the American Midwest to global markets and sparked an era of industrial prosperity.
Lincoln’s Early Military Service
Abraham Lincoln was 21 years old when he arrived in Illinois in 1830, having moved with his family from Indiana. By 1832, the 23-year-old was living in New Salem when the Black Hawk War erupted. Lincoln enlisted in the Illinois Volunteers on April 21, 1832, near Richland Creek in Sangamon County—roughly halfway between New Salem and Springfield.
The very next day, he mustered into state service 40 miles west at Beardstown on the Illinois River. Standing an imposing 6 feet 4 inches tall, Lincoln was elected captain of his company, a leadership position he later noted left him both surprised and deeply proud.
From Captain to Private
On May 3, 1832, Lincoln officially mustered into U.S. military service near Janesville, Wisconsin. His initial term expired on May 27 in Ottawa, Wisconsin, without Lincoln ever firing a single shot in combat.
Undeterred, he immediately re-enlisted that same afternoon as a private in Captain Iles’ company. When that brief stint concluded, he signed on yet again, serving under Captain Early. Lincoln’s frontier military campaign finally drew to a close on July 10, 1832, when he officially mustered out at Whitewater, Wisconsin.
Capt. A. Lincoln 1832. Dixon, Illinois. The 6-foot-4-inch Lincoln was elected captain, a position he said he was both surprised and proud to receive. June 2017. Author’s photograph. 6.87mb.
Sculpting the Young President: Leonard Crunelle (1872–1944).
During his deployments, young Lincoln was stationed at Fort Dixon on the Rock River in Lee County, Illinois. Today, that exact historic ground is home to a heroic-sized bronze statue unveiled in late September 1930. The monument was crafted by French-born sculptor Leonard Crunelle (1872–1944).
The Old Settlers’ Memorial Log Cabin in Young Captain Lincoln Statue Park on the north bank of the Rock River in Dixon, Illinois. While the cabin itself was built later in 1894 as a collective monument to honor the region’s early pioneers, it stands as a perfect architectural representation of the rugged, hand-hewn log structures that defined the Illinois frontier during the early 1830s. The site holds deep historical significance, as it rests directly on the former grounds of Fort Dixon, where a 23-year-old Abraham Lincoln was stationed a a young volunteer in the Illinois National Guard during the Black Hawk War of 1832. Originally established as a ferry service and trading post by a settler named John “Father” Dixon, the location was rapidly fortified into a military base by General Henry Atkinson in May 1832. It became a critical strategic hub connecting various frontier outposts, temporarily hosting young Abraham Lincoln as well as historical figures such as Winfield Scott, Zachary Taylor, and Jefferson Davis. June 2017. Author’s photograph. 6.75 mb.
View of the Rock River in Dixon, Illinois, from the grounds of Lincoln Statue Park—the former location of Fort Dixon where young Abraham Lincoln served in the state militia. Across the river is the dome of the Lee County Courthouse dome in Dixon, Illinois. PHOTO: “Rock River Fall_03” by markellis_1964 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
Crunelle’s immigrant family had immigrated to Illinois in 1889, settling in Decatur. While working in the local coal mines, Crunelle began shaping fired clay sculptures. His raw talent eventually caught the attention of prominent American sculptor Lorado Taft, who brought the young artist to Chicago to study at the Art Institute.
The artist Leonard Crunelle (1872–1944) stands with the heroic-sized clay model ofLincoln the Debater in his studio before its 1929 dedication in Freeport, Illinois. The following year, Crunelle sculpted Capt. A. Lincoln for Dixon, Illinois—capturing an even younger portrait of the president. Scaled bronze replicas of both historic masterworks now decorate the interior corridors of Lincoln’s Tomb in Springfield. Public Domain.
Lorado Taft made his Black Hawk statue monument in 1911 in Oregon, Illinois, also on the Rock River about 16 miles upstream from Dixon, Illinois. It is part of the area that saw action during the Black Hawk War in 1832 and led to the complete surrender and expulsion of the last Native American group in Illinois. “Black Hawk (aka ‘The Eternal Indian’)” by Dan Brekke is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.
A Milestone in Presidential Iconography
Crunelle’s Capt. A. Lincoln monument stands as a groundbreaking milestone in presidential artwork. While Lincoln frequently expressed pride in his brief military experience during his subsequent legal and political careers, traditional monuments rarely highlighted this era.
Though Crunelle had achieved acclaim for his 1929 statue Lincoln the Debater in Freeport, Illinois, his Dixon monument took a much bolder step backward in time. By capturing a 23-year-old soldier starting his public life, Crunelle introduced an entirely fresh, untapped chapter to the Great Emancipator’s ever-expanding public iconology.
The bronze plaque on the backside of the Capt. A. Lincoln statue base in Dixon, Illinois, details Abraham Lincoln’s 1832 Black Hawk War military record. Erected by the State of Illinois in 1930, the tablet stands on the historic site of the Fort Dixon block house.
The inscription lists the exact dates of Lincoln’s transitions from a volunteer private to an elected Captain, his subsequent re-enlistments under Captains Iles and Early, and his final discharge at Whitewater, Wisconsin. The bottom roster immortalizes the Fort Dixon Memorial Commission, highlighting prominent Illinois figures of the era, including Chicago sculptor Lorado Taft and the monument’s creator, Leonard Crunelle. June 2017. Author’s photograph. 9mb
FEATURE Image: The Pickwick Theatre Building, an Art Deco movie palace, opened in 1928. Its marquee is one of the most recognized structures in Park Ridge, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The marquee became famous nationwide when it was featured in the opening sequence of the nationally syndicated television show, Gene Siskel & Roger Ebert’s At the Movies. Author’s photograph.
The Pickwick Theatre Building is more than a surviving movie palace. It is one of the Chicago area’s most important Art Deco landmarks, combining architectural innovation, artistic craftsmanship, community identity, and cultural memory in a structure that has remained a defining symbol of Park Ridge since 1928.
Pickwick architects’ rendering, exterior, 1927. Public Domain.
The Pickwick Theatre Building was designed in 1928 by architects R. Harold Zook and William F. McCaughey, combining a theater, storefronts, offices, and restaurant into a unified Art Deco complex. The building is nationally recognized for its distinctive Art Deco design, including its 100-foot tower, sunburst ornamentation, stained glass, lanterns, and massive marquee.
The Pickwick Theatre Building was designed by architectural partners R. Harold Zook (1889-1949) and younger engineer and architect William F. McCaughey (pronounced McCoy). The complex includes a movie auditorium, restaurant, storefronts and offices. Both architects apprenticed under Howard Van Doren Shaw (1869-1926), a leading Arts and Crafts architect and early colleague to Frank Lloyd Wright. Zook and McCaughey did significant work in other affluent Chicago suburbs and out of state. Zook designed homes in Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois, including his own quirky home in Hinsdale, Illinois, in 1924 where he resided until his death in 1949 (see –https://www.ourmidland.com/realestate/article/Designed-by-R-Harold-Zook-This-Quirky-Illinois-16056515.php – retrieved April 25, 2023). Zook’s public buildings included the St. Charles Municipal Building (1939) and the DuPage County Courthouse (1937). Zook and McCaughey had also partnered to design and build Maine East High School (1927). For a photograph of R. Harold Zook, see-http://www.zookhomeandstudio.org/r-harold-zook.html – retrieved April 25, 2023. McCaughey was born in Virginia and came to Illinois in 1916. He made his home in Park Ridge for many years and maintained an office in the new Pickwick Theater Building he designed.
Originally, the theater had a seating capacity of 1,450. The tower is 100 feet tall with a decorative limestone sunburst carving and capped by an ornamental 15-foot iron lantern. The sunburst is filled by stained glass while on each side of the central tower are two shorter matching pedestals capped with their own lanterns. The building faces both Northwest Highway and Prospect Avenue in nearly equal dimensions (the Prospect side is about 12 feet longer).The building is capped by a cornice with dentils as its second-floor window bays are separated by art deco piers. Each façade meets at a rounded corner. The base of the tower is met by its massive cast-iron theatre marquee.
The Pickwick is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and remains a celebrated example of Art Deco preservation.
Restored to its original 1928 appearance in 2012, the Pickwick marquee became famous nationwide when it was featured on the opening sequence for Siskel & Ebert’s “At the Movies” in the 1980’s. Author’s photograph.
The Pickwick Theater Building was erected at a major intersection not far from today’s Metra Union Pacific line commuter railroad station. By 1930, when the theater building was new, the population of Park Ridge had grown to 10,000 residents. (In 2020 there were almost 40,000 residents).
Classic Art Deco
In addition to being on the National Register of Historic Places, The Pickwick Theater Building is noted for its Art Deco style of architecture. Art Deco is defined by its emphasis on geometric designs, bright colors, and a range of ornament and motifs. Zook and McCaughey’s romantic style demonstrates that they were as much artists as architects evident in their distinctive designs, use of natural materials, and quality of craftsmanship.
Artist Alfonso Iannelli played a major role in the building’s visual identity through sculptures, murals, decorative panels, the organ console, and the famous marquee.
Alfonso Iannelli and wife, 1916. The artist’s home and studio at 255 N. Northwest Highway was literally half a mile away from the new movie palace in Park Ridge. Public Domain.
Sculptor and designer Alfonso Iannelli (1888-1965), who maintained a studio and home in Park Ridge, contributed much to the Pickwick’s interior architecture and ornamentation. Iannelli ‘s decorative work for the building extended to the sculptures, murals, fire curtain, plaster panels, and even its Wurlitzer organ console as well as the cast-iron marquee outside. In 1990, the theater expanded the Pickwick’s screenings without altering the original auditorium while the marquee’s original 1928 red-and-gold color scheme and treatment was restored in 2012.
On December 6, 2022 it was announced the Pickwick Theatre would be closed in January 2023. At the time of this post’s publishing, the theatre was still open and showing a roster of new films. See – https://www.pickwicktheatre.com/ – retrieved April 25, 2023.
SOURCES:
Alice Sinkevitch, AIA Guide to Chicago, 2nd Edition, Harcourt, Inc., Orlando, 2004, p. 417.
Green, Betty. Zook: A Look at R. Harold Zook’s Unique Architecture. Chicago: Ampersand, Inc., 2010.
Jameson, David. Alfonso Iannelli: Modern by Design. Oak Park, IL: Top Five Books, 2013. Alfonso Iannelli: Modern by Design(Top-Five-Books, 2013)
Preservation Real Estate Advisors. Pickwick Theater Building Nomination for Landmark Designation.Park Ridge, IL: Park Ridge Historic Preservation Commission, 2010.
Yanul, Thomas G., and Paul E. Sprague, “Pickwick Theater Building,” Cook County, Illinois. National Register of Historic Places Inventory–Nomination Form, 1974. National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C.
