WHEELING, W.Va. (WTRF) – Wheeling is a city full of history, and part of entering the future is being able to honor the past.
At the September 6 Wheeling City Council meeting, two ARPA Allocations have been granted to put work into two very special monuments in Wheeling.
One of which is getting a much-needed refurbishment, and the other is looking to be built.
The first allocation is going to the Fort Henry Chapter of the NSSAR for the McColloch’s Leap Memorial on Wheeling Hill.
This memorial has not had any work done to it for 105 years.
They’ve raised a total of $37,000.00 for refurbishments so far, and the work is out for bid.
The other allocation is for a Governor Arthur Boreman Statue to be built and placed near Independence Hall.
Arthur Boreman was West Virginia’s first governor and there are no statues of him in the entire state of West Virginia.
”When I visit a city, I go toward the monuments. I want to see what that city holds dear, where they are willing to raise up something, put their money into something that says ‘We value this.’”
Margaret Brennan – Wheeling Historian
Although costly, the city says that they are willing to put money into these pieces that are not only educational art, but a great honor to those who came before us.
Mayor Elliott has also presented a proposal to add a pavilion across the street from McColloch’s Leap for everyone to have the chance to sit, reflect, and enjoy.
”The committee was looking for different fundraisers, so the state is putting in some money, the county is putting in some money. Different legislatures also got some funds for this project, so there’s a lot of different pieces. The city said we’d do up to a quarter of it, so it’s about a $200,000.00 project. You know, the cost of bronze has gone up remarkably in the last couple of years.”
Mayor Glenn Elliott – Mayor of Wheeling
With the correct funding, the Arthur Boreman statue is hoped to be completed by 2024, and the refurbishments to McColloch’s Leap should only take around 30 days.
