Haymarket Square.2C Chicago Monuments relating to the Haymarket affair

workers finish installing gelert s statue of chicago policeman in haymarket square, 1889. statue stands @ chicago police headquarters.



the original monument seen in busy haymarket square, circa 1905

in 1889, commemorative nine-foot (2.7 meter) bronze statue of chicago policeman sculptor johannes gelert erected in middle of haymarket square private funds raised union league club of chicago. statue unveiled on may 30, 1889, frank degan, son of officer mathias degan. on may 4, 1927, 41st anniversary of haymarket affair, streetcar jumped tracks , crashed monument. motorman said sick of seeing policeman arm raised . city restored statue in 1928 , moved union park. during 1950s, construction of kennedy expressway erased half of old, run-down market square, , in 1956, statue moved special platform built overlooking freeway, near original location.

the haymarket statue vandalized black paint on may 4, 1968, 82nd anniversary of haymarket affair, following confrontation between police , demonstrators @ protest against vietnam war. on october 6, 1969, shortly before days of rage protests, statue destroyed when bomb placed between legs. weatherman took credit blast, broke 100 windows in neighborhood , scattered pieces of statue onto kennedy expressway below. statue rebuilt , unveiled on may 4, 1970, blown yet again weatherman on october 6, 1970. statue rebuilt, again, , mayor richard j. daley posted 24‑hour police guard @ statue. guard cost $67,440 per year. in 1972, moved lobby of central police headquarters, , in 1976 enclosed courtyard of chicago police academy. 3 decades statue s empty, graffiti-marked pedestal stood on platform in run-down remains of haymarket square known anarchist landmark. on june 1, 2007, statue rededicated @ chicago police headquarters new pedestal, unveiled geraldine doceka, officer mathias degan s great-granddaughter.

in 1992, site of speakers wagon marked bronze plaque set sidewalk, reading:

decade of strife between labor , industry culminated here in confrontation resulted in tragic death of both workers , policemen. on may 4, 1886, spectators @ labor rally had gathered around mouth of crane s alley. contingent of police approaching on des plaines street met bomb thrown south of alley. resultant trial of 8 activists gained worldwide attention labor movement, , initiated tradition of may day labor rallies in many cities.

designated on march 25, 1992
richard m. daley, mayor




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