The Bell Tolls

Country Living Magazine | March 1999

Bells chime sonorously over resting stone edifices and draped figures of solemn contentment, which await each sunrise. The hour toll — tolls for the men who have served and given their lives for America. Behind the lock of the massive native oak doors of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Chapel a silence is contained. The chapel's history is viewed by the large Italian marble tablets that line the interior's base, engraved with the names of some 2,800 men of Marion County. The servicemen's names begin with the War of 1812 through the Civil War.

One can see the pas­sion of detail and artwork of the Chapel with its stone, iron and slate. It is made of Bedford (Indiana) stone, while trimmed with Syracuse brown stone. At its entrance are Red Beach granite columns; guarded aloft by a soldier found at each entrance carved from Bedford stone by a Mr. Carabelli from Cleveland. Small cannons and rifles mark the entrance steps that lead to the heavy Chapel doors. Cathedral glass lights the interior floor of Georgia marble and the inlaid star that centers the vaulted high ceiling. The symbol of "US" lies above a sword and shield bearing the word "Union."

Union was important at the conception of the Chapel's erection in 1887, shortly after the Civil War. It repre­sented a united strength of the American people. An artilleryman with cannon stands above the entrance door on the inside wall, while a sailor is found above the opposing entrance. Lincoln and Grant are centered among the stained glass panels. The panels are capped with an engraved arch denoting a strategic battle.

The interior room is surrounded with ornately detailed carved bullets and leaves forming a ledge beneath the 16 colorful cathe­dral windows. The Chapel is solemn and impresses upon the viewer its significance in the effort to defend America. Its struc­ture is vibrantly trimmed by the Syracuse brown stone, while wreathed urns mark the corner pedestals of the building's roof. A large eagle surveys the changing landscape and looks out on the encroaching and expanding city.

The Chapel was conceived by the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument Association, to perpetuate the memory of the brave men who endured the hardships and dangers for the protection of our flag and country. The Chapel's architecture was designed by W.C. Whitehead and the monument was erected at the costly sum of $14,939.75. For 1887, this huge sum was collected by a tax levy, while the plot was donated by the Marion Cemetery Association.

On Aug. 22, 1888, the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Chapel was dedicated. The Marion Daily Star quoted General William Gibson as saying that the Memorial Chapel was, "the finest he had ever seen." Every Memorial Day this Chapel has played a role on this somber day of remem­brance. In 1981 on its 100th dedicated with a mechanical Shulmerick Carillon that now strikes the hour and plays a select­ed song of the season or hymn every three hours at 9, 12, 3 and 6 each day.