The Men Behind the Memorial

In 1925, Representative Samuel Beecher Hart introduced a bill in Pennsylvania's House of Representatives to authorize the construction of the All Wars Memorial. This first bill was defeated; however, a second bill successfully passed in 1927. He was also a captain in Pennsylvania's Grey Invincibles, the last colored unit in the National Guard of Pennsylvania.

Source: Ernst Jockers,J. Otto Schweizer: The Man and His Work. Philadelphia: International Printing Company, 1953, 62.

Born on March 27, 1863 in Zurich, Switzerland, J. Otto Schweizer was responsible for the design of the All Wars Memorial. Prior to being chosen for the design, he designed several war sculptures throughout Pennsylvania.

Sources: Ernst Jockers, J. Otto Schweizer: The Man and His Work. Philadelphia: International Printing Company, 1953, 62  and Lieberman, "Race and Remembrance: Philadelphia's ‘All Wars Memorial to Colored Soldiers and Sailors’ and the Politics of Place,” 21