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Description
An undated photograph depicting a detail of one of the female figures on the William P. Coleman Memorial Fountain at the center of Cesar Chavez Plaza bounded by 9th, 10th, I, and J Streets.
Coleman's widow, Florence Coleman, donated $30,000 (the equivalent of about $461,000 in 2020) to the City of Sacramento for the construction of a fountain in her husband's memory. Popular San Francisco based sculptor Ralph Stackpole completed the project's design in 1924 and unveiled the fountain on February 26, 1927.
The female figures' physiques were the subject of controversy, but as representatives of three major rivers in Northern California, Stackpole designed them to convey the impression of great physical strength, much to the chagrin of individuals who preferred their women waifish.
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