Last update: 04/15/2008
Tivoli Fountain
Location:
Northeast
of the Legislative Building, alongside Capitol Way on the west
campus
Description:
- Artist- replica of a famous Roman-style fountain located in Tivoli Park, Copenhagen, Denmark. Fritz Meyer of Copenhagen designed and built the original Danish fountain. Wohleb, Wohleb, and Bennett were the architects for the Olympia version.
- Endorsing Entities- Olympia-Tumwater Foundation
- Dedication Date- April 15, 1953
- Materials- copper and cement
- Inscriptions- "Replica of the Tivoli Fountain—Tivoli Park, Copenhagen, Denmark. Presented to the State of Washington by Olympia-Tumwater Foundation.. Peter G. Schmidt, President. 1953."
History & significance:
The idea for adding this spectacular fountain to the capitol campus was first conceived by Peter G. Schmidt during his visit to Copenhagen, Denmark in 1949. It was at that time that Schmidt, then-president of the Olympia-Tumwater Foundation (a privately-funded organization created for the advance of recreational, benevolent, and educational projects for the State of Washington) was especially taken with a large fountain he saw there. This fountain, it turned out, was a copy of one located in Tivoli, a town about 16 miles east of Rome that contains one of the finest surviving examples of a garden from the Renaissance period in Italy.
It was Danish designer Fritz Meyer who duplicated one of the large Tivoli Garden fountains for the park in Copenhagen, which came to bear the Tivoli name due to the addition of the replica fountain. Schmidt recalled later his feelings that the state capitol campus lacked a key landscape attraction, and it struck him that another replica of the impressive Roman-style fountain was just what the Washington State capitol grounds needed.
Schmidt purchased many of the essential parts for the fountain before returning home to Olympia where his fellow Olympia-Tumwater Foundation members enthusiastically accepted the idea for the fountain’s construction. The foundation offered the fountain as a gift to the State of Washington, and it was accepted by joint House and Senate resolution on February 1, 1951.
Construction of the 50-foot diameter fountain began soon after the legislature’s approval. Fritz Meyer, designer of the first Tivoli Gardens replica, helped by manufacturing and shipping specifically designed parts from Denmark to Olympia with plans for their erection. Wohleb, Wohleb, and Bennett served as coordinating architects for the project. The fountain was completed for its dedication on April 15, 1953 when then-Governor Arthur B. Langlie accepted the spurting gift on behalf of the State. The fountain features an outer ring of 540 jets which create an umbrella of water, and inside of this are two rings of vertical spray jets rising out of large, tulip-shaped copper tubs. In the center of the fountain is its most striking feature, a central spout that shoots water approximately 25 feet into the air. All of the sprays alternately rise and fall together, creating five different artistic water displays while circulating 600 gallons of water a minute.
Maintenance record:
-
1953—The
fountain was installed, then dedicated on April 15th. - 1986-87—The fountain underwent a $68,900 renovation, which consisted of constructing and replacing copper leaves, replacing lights, replacing pumps and water stage controls, repairing water seals and joints, installing a wind sensor to shut off the fountain in high winds, replacing a sitting bench, and installing a drinking fountain.
- Spring, 1988—As a symbolic gesture of the need for water
conservation during a severe drought that was occurring,
then-Governor Booth Gardner ordered that the fountain be turned
off.
Winter, 1989—The fountain (silenced for more than six months at this point) underwent routine testing in January, a time of several severe freezes that year. Improper drainage of the fountain following the test led to splitting of steel pipes and cracking in the concrete foundation. - Spring, 1989—After approximately $2,800 worth of cement and mechanical repairs, the fountain was reopened. In response to the damage, operation procedures for the fountain were reorganized and redefined to prevent a reoccurrence.
- Today—The fountain currently undergoes routine maintenance, which includes cleaning intake screens, checking water levels, chemical testing, skimming water surface of debris, power washing fountain basins and structures, maintaining the circulating pump and air compressor, and servicing the float/fill valve. The fountain is operated each year between approximately April 1st and October 30th, when it is shut down and winterized.
