Darlington Memorial Fountain


The Darlington Memorial Fountain is a gilded bronze statue by C. Paul Jennewein. It is located at Judiciary Park at 5th Street and D Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Judiciary Square neighborhood.

Background

The Darlington Memorial Fountain was named after Joseph J. Darlington. As a young man, Darlington came to Washington to attend law school in 1849. He then gained an office on Fifth Street, and was known as the leader of the legal community. Darlington worked on Fifth Street for the remainder of his career.
Shortly after his death, friends and colleagues proposed to have a memorial built in his honor. A committee was formed under Frank J. Hogan to further the cause. After Congress passed a resolution in favor of the memorial, the committee passed its design selection responsibilities to the United States Commission of Fine Arts.

Design

The design by C. Paul Jennewein was approved by the United States Commission of Fine Arts, in 1921.
It was installed in November 1923. There was some controversy about the nymph, both for its nudity and its lack of reference to Darlington.

Inscription

The inscription reads:
; On top of bronze base:
;On side of bronze base:
;On side of marble base:

Awards

The sculpture was awarded the 1926 Fairmount Park Association Prize from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Another example was acquired by Brookgreen Gardens in 1940, from Charles Louis Borie, friend of the sculptor.