William McKinley Monument

McKinley Monument is situated at the east end of the Golden Gate Park Panhandle in San Francisco. The sculpture consists of a bronze figure atop a square granite base that is approximately 6 feet wide and 9 feet tall, with a 13 foot wide square granite base. It is set upon a circular foundation of five granite steps that radiate out from the monument and drop down four feet before reaching the ground.

The statue atop the monument is a female figure cast in bronze to symbolize The Republic. She is holding a large palm leaf in her right hand and has her left resting on the hilt of a sword. A white marble medallion is set into the front face of the 9 foot plinth with a carving of McKinley’s profile facing north. An inscription states that “This monument was erected by the people of San Francisco A.D. 1904” on the south face, and the “Ground for this monument was broken by President Roosevelt May 13 1903” is inscribed on the north.

ARG Conservation Services (ARG/CS) was retained by the City of San Francisco’s Art Commission to conduct a structural assessment of the McKinley Monument. The goal of the structural assessment was to assess its overall seismic stability, locate areas of material weakness or that lacked structural support, and to develop options and recommendations for seismically retrofitting and strengthening the monument where needed. A visual survey of the monument was conducted from the ground and from an extension ladder to assess the condition, materials, and dimensions of the monument for this investigation. In addition to visual inspection, a borescope, an infrared (IR) camera, a metal detector, and a Structure Scan Mini HR were used to non-destructively assess the interior structure of the monument.