Monument Square - Our Lady of Victories

October 26th around Noon

Initial Notes: I have passed this monument a million times and never stopped to actually look at it and figure out what it is for. It is in the middle of Monument Square in Portland, Maine so it being a Saturday when we visited, it was quite busy. It is generally well kept, though there was some trash around which I found disappointing. The monument itself is gigantic. It really is quite impressive and a very beautiful monument to the people it is honoring.

Reaction: Not many people think about Maine when they think about the Civil War. Before I started taking this history class I never really considered the fact Maine may have actually played a more significant role in history than high school and elementary history classes may have led us to believe. Maine was one of the most eager states in the Union and contributed more manpower to the war than any other state in the Union, though, Maine came in second for amount of Navy members (Massachusetts came in first). Hundreds of civilians also helped by being nurses, doctors, relief workers, and agents. Maine supplied military manpower, supplies, ships, arms, and political support during the Civil War. It was also the first state in the Northeast to be aligned with the new Republican Party. This alignment was due in part because of Abraham Lincoln choosing Maine’s Hannibal Hamlin as his first Vice President. Harriet Beecher Stowe, of Brunswick, is also considered a big influence in the Civil War because of her book Uncle Tom’s Cabin. It is rumored that when Lincoln met Stowe he said, “so this is the little lady who made this big war”.

The monument dedicated to the soldiers and sailors of the Civil War is located in the middle of Monument Square in Portland and is called, Our Lady of Victories. The monument was officially dedicated to the Maine

soldiers and sailors on October 28^th 1891. It is made of granite and bronze, which is fitting because Maine at one point was known for its granite. The granite part of the statue was designed by Richard Morris Hunt of New York, while the bronze sculpture was by Franklin Simmons. It is inscribed with, “Portland/To Her Sons Who Died/For The Union”. The Lady of Victories stands fourteen feet tall, atop the already looming monument. She is a symbol of unity and around the monument below her there are bronze soldiers and sailors. She is holding a sword wrapped in an American flag in her right hand and in her left hand is a branch of maple leaves. Atop Our Lady of Victories’ head is a crown of leaves and she is dressed in classical garb.

Maine played a huge role in the Civil War, which I feel is unfortunately ignored by historians that teach younger ages and even high school age students. This class has shown me that though Maine is stereotyped as an “insignificant” state when it comes to historical events, it really is not. Maine is one of the states in the Union who gave the most in lives and supplies and support during the war. One could even argue Maine started the war because of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel. The monument really shows how much Maine appreciates and honors the men who gave their lives to the cause because it is a really hard monument to miss. I mean, the entire area is named Monument Square!