Side A: “Guardians of Traffic,” four double-sided figural pylons towering over 40-feet above either end of the Hope Memorial Bridge, have connected Cleveland’s east and west side since 1932. They were designed by architect Frank R. Walker and lead sculptor Henry Hering. More than 20 immigrant stonemasons — many from the Italian village of Oratino — carved the figures at Ohio Cut Stone Company on Random Road from sandstone quarried in nearby Berea. The Italian sculptors lived or worshipped in Cleveland’s Little Italy. Each hand-carved Guardian holds a different vehicle, meant to portray the history of ground transportation. Voted “an outstanding architectural triumph” by the American Institute of Steel Construction in 1936, the bridge and its iconic Guardians were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
Side B: I “Guardiani del traffico”, quattro tralicci figurativi a doppia faccia che svettano oltre 40 piedi alle due estremità della Hope Memorial Bridge, collegano il lato est e ovest di Cleveland dal 1932. Sono stati progettati dall’architetto Frank R. Walker e dallo scultore principale Henry Hering. Più di 20 scalpellini immigrati, molti del villaggio italiano di Oratino, hanno scolpito le figure alla fabbrica dell’Ohio Cut Stone Company a Random Road con l’arenaria estratta nel borgo di Berea. Gli scultori abitavano o andavano alla messa nel quartiere Little Italy di Cleveland. Ogni “Guardiano” scolpito tiene braccio un veicolo diverso, simboleggiano la storia del trasporto. Votato “un eccezionale trionfo architettonico” dall’American Institute of Steel Construction nel 1936, il ponte è stato aggiunto al National Register of Historic Places nel 1976.
Sponsors: William G. Pomeroy Foundation, Unione e Fratellanza Oratinese, Little Italy Redevelopment Corporation, Ohio History Connection
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