Indianapolis Monument

One thing that totally surprised me during out trip to Indianapolis was the existence of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, a HUGE piece of sculpture in downtown Indy. My first clue that it existed was when a waiter at a nearby restaurant referenced it. But of course, it’s a huge sculpture / building / monument thing, it takes up a whole city block at least, and much of downtown is literally centered around it.

It’s a monument to all of Indiana’s dead from just about every US-involved war before WWI. It’s certainly a hodge-podge of styles, but it’s interesting! And such a great city centerpiece; there’s a roundabout street around it, and big plaza areas to sit out and enjoy the city.

And it’s cool! A big huge tower, surrounded by fountains and pools, and huge stonework. You can go inside and climb to the top, although it wasn’t open the days we were there (plan ahead, Kirkland!). It’s very 19th-century.

If this was in a European city, it would be totally famous, and people would arrange their itineraries to get selfies in front of it. It’s certainly bigger and more interesting than Nelson’s Column in London, for example.