Abstract:
This thesis analyzes the creation, original meaning, and reinterpretation of the Indiana World War Memorial Plaza in downtown Indianapolis as they relate to national commemorative trends. Built in the wake of the First World War, the Plaza was intended to serve a greater purpose than simply honor Indiana’s veterans. Evidence suggests that the state’s citizenry had commemorative expectations in the post-war years that stemmed from Indianapolis’s past memorial endeavors. Monument building had come to define Indiana’s identity, and a majority of its residents were in favor of constructing some type of memorial that would garner national attention. Issues regarding architectural character, the use of urban space, financial burden and responsibility, and the appropriate roles of local governments in commemorative projects each contributed to the contentious nature of the War Memorial Plaza’s story. These factors, along with the overshadowing of the site’s significance by the Great Depression and Second World War, each illustrate the greater controversies that surround World War I remembrance. In this context the Plaza’s history serves as a local study for the ways in which national commemorative trends were influential in post-First World War Indianapolis.
