EXPLORE
Cenotaph Square
Cenotaph Square, which comprises the Cenotaph and the Sunken Garden, is located at the north end of American Legion Mall.
Constructed in 1931, Cenotaph Square memorializes the nation’s first casualty of World War I: Corporal James B. Gresham of Company F, 16th Infantry from Evansville, Indiana. Today, the Cenotaph is dedicated to all the dead of World War I.
Hours:
Open from dawn to dusk
Admission:
Free
Location:
Get directions
Fast Facts
IT WAS DESIGNED TO HOLD THE REMAINS of the nation’s first combat death of World War I, Corporal James B. Gresham of Company F, 16th Infantry, from Evansville, Indiana. Though the Gresham family was present for the dedication of the Cenotaph in his honor, they subsequently decided that the body would remain in its original burial place in Evansville. The Cenotaph remains empty today, dedicated to all those lost in World War I. An inscription on the north side memorializes Gresham.
THE FOCAL POINT OF THE SQUARE is a rectangular black granite cenotaph (raised, empty tomb) resting on a low green and red granite base that sits on a pavement of polished red and green granite squares.