Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument (at night), Indianapolis, Ind.
In 1916, the moonlight appeared to reflect off Victory’s gleaming bronze torch, lit as bright as the full moon. But, the image on this Penny Post would have been impossible to capture photographically at the time of printing. A common practice among postcard manufacturers was to hire an artist to render and/or embellish night scene versions of popular landmarks.
Postmarked: Indianapolis 2, IND. APR 25, 1916 3 PM
Message:
Dear sister, I got here all ok at 11 o’clock. the car was late I am all ok.
it is a fine Day here. I saw B Tait this morning
Will
Addressed to:
Miss Anna E Gross
Huntington Ind
728 Wilkerson St.
A penny for your thoughts … In this artistic rendering of Monument Circle, the Victory sculpture appears illuminated and visible to bystanders on the ground. However, it wasn’t until Indiana’s massive Centennial celebration on July 4, 1916, that Indianapolis was first enabled to see the top half of the Soliders and Sailors Monument at night.
Curious to learn more about the electrical engineering feat that lit the Monument in 1916? Check out Libby Cierzniak’s article, Indianapolis Collected: Out of the darkness and into the Circle of Lights.
A lot of these night time shots were done in the daytime (the sharp shadows are a dead giveaway on some of them) and then artistically altered. Pretty impressive for pre-Photoshop, eh?