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At 04:42 PM 2/24/1998 -0600, Mark Oehlert wrote: >Question from a student, "Why is the Mall in DC, called the Mall?" >Any help? I may be completely off-base about this, but here's my essentially unresearched two cents' worth. Cleveland also has a Mall, similar in concept to the one in DC in that it groups major public buildings around a public promenade (the most apposite definition in my dictionary) with a long open vista to something appropriately magnificent: Lake Erie, in this case, rather than the Capitol. Cleveland's Mall was created under Tom L. Johnson around the turn of this century as a civic focal point and monument to the grandeur of the urban ideal. Apparently it was inspired by the Columbian Exposition of 1893, and it was closely related to other Progressive-era civic monuments like museums and libraries. Creating it meant demolishing a lot of existing structures that weren't necessarily in the best shape. If I remember correctly, that area of Washington was similarly a mess of shanties and boarding houses until about the same time. On that analogy, I'd be surprised if the term was used before the Progressive period, and, on a hunch, it might derive from a particular use at the Exposition or by some prominent Progressive-era architects. ****************************************************** Marc Harris The Pennsylvania State University, Altoona College 3000 Ivyside Park / Altoona, PA 16601 mlh6@psu.edu / Phone (814)949-5242 / Fax (814)949-5011
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