Pollack Memorial Monument

Asbjornsen, Sigvald, 1867-1954, sculptor. Faris, Fred F., architect. Edward C. Kreutzer (Firm), contractor. Dedicated May 28, 1916. Relocated 1956. Moved, sadly, to Heritage Park in November 2013. The monument commemorates Augustus Pollack. Born in Germany in 1830, Pollack immigrated to Baltimore in 1849, and moved to West Virginia in 1854. After the Civil War, he founded the Cigar and Tobacco Factory and the Crown Stogie Company in East Wheeling. Pollack was one of the city's leading businessmen and civic leaders, and was especially active in affairs of the communities' large German speaking population. He was known as a model employer and was a friend of organized labor, often called upon to settle disputes. In his will, he bequested scholarship funds to support a student from the "industrial" population. He died in April 1906. The idea for the monument originated shortly after his death, and a memorial committee was formed in June 1906. The Committee collected funds from 6 international unions, 750 locals, and over 3,000 individuals. Total cost of the monument was $8,433. The monument was designed by Asbjornsen and Faris; built by the firm of Edward C. Kreutzer. Originally sited on the old Ohio City Courthouse grounds, the monument was moved in 1956, when the Courthouse was razed to make way for the new city-county building. Description from Smithsonian Art Inventory

Report on construction
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