Market Square
The twin structures of Market Square—its columns marching in a protective semi-circle around the Navy Memorial—anchor a plaza on Pennsylvania Avenue. Halfway between the US Capitol and the White House, the Memorial itself is composed of a 100 foot wide disc incised with a world map and graced by a bronze sculpture, “The Lone Sailor,” by Stanley Bleifeld, as well as two maritime-themed, inscribed fountains.
Market Square, adjacent to the Federal Triangle, required a demanding fabrication schedule, including specifications for twenty-six, six foot in diameter, five-story, fluted, solid limestone columns on an entasis, complete with capitals and bases, all consistent in color and graining—and with all finished column pieces delivered in a two-week span. Bybee Stone Company designed and installed a custom lathe to meet the schedule for the column project, and rented an abandoned stone mill to stage the job and make their schedule. The final truckloads for the column sections were shipped in April of 1989.
At the time, Will Bybee, then General Manager, said, “I’d guess it’s been forty years or more since a major project contracted for six-foot diameter columns.” He called the project a big challenge, and credited the round-the-clock lathe operators for their extreme care and concentration.
