Rhode Island Holocaust Memorial
Dublin Core
Title
Rhode Island Holocaust Memorial
Subject (Topic)
Subject (Topic)
Memorial Park--Rhode Island--Providence
Downtown--Neighborhoods--Rhode Island--Providence
Monuments--Rhode Island--Providence
Memorial Park--Rhode Island--Providence
Downtown--Neighborhoods--Rhode Island--Providence
Monuments--Rhode Island--Providence
Subject (Object)
Subject (Object)
Commemorative sculpture
Commemorative sculpture
Description
The Rhode Island Holocaust Memorial is made up of six main components: the Outer Curb, the Entrance Gate, the Inner Curb, the Path, the Columns, and the Life Stone.
The Outer Curb, made of light gray granite, lines the memorial. On it are the names of fifteen concentration camps, chosen because they are the most recognizable. Flanking the Memorial is the Entrance Gate. The Gate consists of two semi-rectangular granite pillars, the same dark gray as the Columns. The pillars differ in size. Both pillars contain detailed inscriptions. Passing through the Entrance Gate, the Path is composed of spotted gray stone overlaid with a design of washed-out, rusted steel train tracks. As the Path continues, the tracks narrow, representing the loss of two-thirds of Europe’s Jewish population.
Lining the Path is the Inner Curb. The Curb is lined with names of Holocaust survivors who immigrated to Rhode Island following their liberation. As you reach the Life Stone, the six Memorial Columns come into focus. The Columns are made of smooth, dark gray granite. The six black granite Columns of increasing height represent the six million Jews that died.
The Path ends at the Life Stone﹣a large white stone that starkly opposes the dark pillars surrounding it. The Stone represents a Stone of Remembrance. In Judaism, one leaves a Stone of Remembrance at the grave of someone they love as an act of commemoration.
The Outer Curb, made of light gray granite, lines the memorial. On it are the names of fifteen concentration camps, chosen because they are the most recognizable. Flanking the Memorial is the Entrance Gate. The Gate consists of two semi-rectangular granite pillars, the same dark gray as the Columns. The pillars differ in size. Both pillars contain detailed inscriptions. Passing through the Entrance Gate, the Path is composed of spotted gray stone overlaid with a design of washed-out, rusted steel train tracks. As the Path continues, the tracks narrow, representing the loss of two-thirds of Europe’s Jewish population.
Lining the Path is the Inner Curb. The Curb is lined with names of Holocaust survivors who immigrated to Rhode Island following their liberation. As you reach the Life Stone, the six Memorial Columns come into focus. The Columns are made of smooth, dark gray granite. The six black granite Columns of increasing height represent the six million Jews that died.
The Path ends at the Life Stone﹣a large white stone that starkly opposes the dark pillars surrounding it. The Stone represents a Stone of Remembrance. In Judaism, one leaves a Stone of Remembrance at the grave of someone they love as an act of commemoration.
Creator
Bonner, Jonathan, 1947- (sculptor)
Green, Will, 1951- (landscape architect)
Green, Will, 1951- (landscape architect)
Source
Photographs by Eric Sung, Professor, Providence College
Date
August 26, 2015
Contributor
Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island; Holocaust Education Center of Rhode Island; Rhode Island Holocaust Memorial Committee
Rights
City of Providence, 25 Dorrance Street, Providence, Rhode Island, 02903, United States
Format
JPEG
Language
English
Type
Visual Arts-Sculpture
Coverage
Memorial Park, South Main Street, Providence. Rhode Island, 02903, United States
Has Part
Inscription on black granite column at entrance (right):
Rhode Island Holocaust Memorial
Inscription on the inside black granite column at entrance (right):
Singled out for extermination as part of a "final solution" by the Nazi regime, more than six million Jews were killed during the Holocaust.
Many of them-victims, witnesses, and survivors alike-testify to the memory of brutality in the extreme, of the will to survive it, and the determination among all of us to avoid committing such atrocities in the future.
January 30, 1939, through May 5, 1945
Inscriptions along raised black granite curb (right of entrance):
Sachsenhausen
Theresienstadt
Auschwitz-Birkenau
Inscription on the inside of black granite column at entrance (left):
"We do not want our past to be our children’s future."
Roman Kent
Holocaust survivor
Inscriptions along raised black granite curb (left of entrance):
Dachau
Sobibor
Treblinka
Bergen-Belsen
Belzec
Chelmno
Buchenwald
Mauthausen
Stutthof
Ravensbrüch
Flossenbürg
Majdanek
Inscriptions of donors and committee members along raised black granite curb (after Majdanek):
Donors
Herbert B. Stern
The Hassenfeld Family
State of Rhode Island and Plantations
Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission
The Salmanson Family
Anonymous
David A. Cohen
Aram G. Garabedian
Helene and Bertram Bernhardt Foundation
The David and Hope Hirsch Family
Mark and Donna Ross and Family
The Savit Family
The Norman and Rosalie Fain Family
Marcia Riesman, in loving memory of Robert Riesman
Amy and Jerry Dorfman
Cindy and Mark R. Feinstein
Lori, Corey, Matthew, Trevor, and Izaiah Siegel
Fall River United Jewish Appeal, Inc.
Rosalind Hurwitz
Roberta, Ken, Lindsay, Sarah and Justin Schneider
The Edwin S. Soforenko Foundation
Ralph and Maria Posner
Donna and Sam Perelman
Judy and Arthur Robins
Laura and Avi Nevel
Committee Members
Herbert B. Stern, Chair
David Newman, Honorary Co-Chair
Alan Buff
David and Shirley Brandt
Aram G. Garabedian
Alice Goldstein
Sanford Gorodetsky
Judith Jamieson
Leonard Newman
Randall Rosenthal
Jay Strauss
Marty and Helen Weissman
May Ronny Zeidman
Jonathan Bonner, Artist
Will Green, Landscape Architect
School of Engineering and Design at Johnson & Wales University
Holocaust Education Resource Center of Rhode Island
Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island
Jeffrey K. Savit, President and CEO
Michelle Cicchitelli, Chief Program Officer
Sharon Gaines, Chairman of the Board
Richard A. Licht, Immediate Past Chair
Rhode Island Holocaust Memorial
Inscription on the inside black granite column at entrance (right):
Singled out for extermination as part of a "final solution" by the Nazi regime, more than six million Jews were killed during the Holocaust.
Many of them-victims, witnesses, and survivors alike-testify to the memory of brutality in the extreme, of the will to survive it, and the determination among all of us to avoid committing such atrocities in the future.
January 30, 1939, through May 5, 1945
Inscriptions along raised black granite curb (right of entrance):
Sachsenhausen
Theresienstadt
Auschwitz-Birkenau
Inscription on the inside of black granite column at entrance (left):
"We do not want our past to be our children’s future."
Roman Kent
Holocaust survivor
Inscriptions along raised black granite curb (left of entrance):
Dachau
Sobibor
Treblinka
Bergen-Belsen
Belzec
Chelmno
Buchenwald
Mauthausen
Stutthof
Ravensbrüch
Flossenbürg
Majdanek
Inscriptions of donors and committee members along raised black granite curb (after Majdanek):
Donors
Herbert B. Stern
The Hassenfeld Family
State of Rhode Island and Plantations
Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission
The Salmanson Family
Anonymous
David A. Cohen
Aram G. Garabedian
Helene and Bertram Bernhardt Foundation
The David and Hope Hirsch Family
Mark and Donna Ross and Family
The Savit Family
The Norman and Rosalie Fain Family
Marcia Riesman, in loving memory of Robert Riesman
Amy and Jerry Dorfman
Cindy and Mark R. Feinstein
Lori, Corey, Matthew, Trevor, and Izaiah Siegel
Fall River United Jewish Appeal, Inc.
Rosalind Hurwitz
Roberta, Ken, Lindsay, Sarah and Justin Schneider
The Edwin S. Soforenko Foundation
Ralph and Maria Posner
Donna and Sam Perelman
Judy and Arthur Robins
Laura and Avi Nevel
Committee Members
Herbert B. Stern, Chair
David Newman, Honorary Co-Chair
Alan Buff
David and Shirley Brandt
Aram G. Garabedian
Alice Goldstein
Sanford Gorodetsky
Judith Jamieson
Leonard Newman
Randall Rosenthal
Jay Strauss
Marty and Helen Weissman
May Ronny Zeidman
Jonathan Bonner, Artist
Will Green, Landscape Architect
School of Engineering and Design at Johnson & Wales University
Holocaust Education Resource Center of Rhode Island
Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island
Jeffrey K. Savit, President and CEO
Michelle Cicchitelli, Chief Program Officer
Sharon Gaines, Chairman of the Board
Richard A. Licht, Immediate Past Chair
Medium
Black granite; Marble; Steel
Bibliographic Citation
Bakst, M. Charles. "$700,000 Pledged Toward Memorials. More Need Than Ever to Remember Holocaust, Backers Say." Providence Journal, May 20, 1987.
Carbone, Gerald M. "Planned Memorial in Providence Brings Joy to Holocaust Survivors." Providence Journal, July 26, 2004.
Levitz, Jennifer. "Bodies Fall, Memories Strong. Though Old Age Is Catching Up to Many of Rhode Island’s Dwindling Number of Holocaust Survivors, They Are Still Determined That Their Stories Not Be Forgotten." Providence Journal, May 18, 2005.
"Holocaust Memorial Service." Providence Journal, September 24, 2005.
Kerr, Bob. "A Place Where All of Us Can Learn." Providence Journal, September 25, 2005.
Dujardin, Richard C. "Remembering the Holocaust. Survivors Gather at Site of Memorial." Providence Journal, September 26, 2005.
Kerr, Bob. "A Memorial That Invites People In." Providence Journal, December 7, 2005.
Davis, Karen A. "Providence Parks Board OKs Irish Famine Memorial." Providence Journal, January 26, 2006.
Dujardin, Richard C. "Dispute Over Who Will Get to Build Holocaust Memorial Has Gone to Court." Providence Journal, November 5, 2007.
Kerr, Bob. "The Memorial Should Be There, But It Isn’t." Providence Journal, July 29, 2008.
Naylor, Donita. "Holocaust Memorial Planned." Providence Journal, April 21, 2012.
Smith, Gregory. "Ground Broken on R. I. Holocaust Memorial." Providence Journal, May 12, 2015.
Gutterman, Leslie Y. "We Have Choice of Courage." Providence Journal, August 26, 2015.
Parker, Paul Edward. "Holocaust Memorial a Place to Reflect." Providence Journal, August 27, 2015.
Fitzpatrick, Edward. "Ghost of 38 Studios Haunts Ballpark Proposal. Absolutely!" Providence Journal, August 30, 2015.
Ziner, Karen Lee. "News Digest. Vigil on Sunday at Holocaust Memorial." Providence Journal, March 5, 2017.
Mooney, Tom. "Rally at Holocaust Memorial Condemns Anti-Semitic Act.’ Providence Journal, March 6, 2017.
Tempera, Jacqueline. "Holocaust Survivors: Forever be Vigilant." Providence Journal, August 29, 2017.
Gross, Esther. "WaterFire Highlights Tolerance." Providence Journal, August 31, 2017.
Carbone, Gerald M. "Planned Memorial in Providence Brings Joy to Holocaust Survivors." Providence Journal, July 26, 2004.
Levitz, Jennifer. "Bodies Fall, Memories Strong. Though Old Age Is Catching Up to Many of Rhode Island’s Dwindling Number of Holocaust Survivors, They Are Still Determined That Their Stories Not Be Forgotten." Providence Journal, May 18, 2005.
"Holocaust Memorial Service." Providence Journal, September 24, 2005.
Kerr, Bob. "A Place Where All of Us Can Learn." Providence Journal, September 25, 2005.
Dujardin, Richard C. "Remembering the Holocaust. Survivors Gather at Site of Memorial." Providence Journal, September 26, 2005.
Kerr, Bob. "A Memorial That Invites People In." Providence Journal, December 7, 2005.
Davis, Karen A. "Providence Parks Board OKs Irish Famine Memorial." Providence Journal, January 26, 2006.
Dujardin, Richard C. "Dispute Over Who Will Get to Build Holocaust Memorial Has Gone to Court." Providence Journal, November 5, 2007.
Kerr, Bob. "The Memorial Should Be There, But It Isn’t." Providence Journal, July 29, 2008.
Naylor, Donita. "Holocaust Memorial Planned." Providence Journal, April 21, 2012.
Smith, Gregory. "Ground Broken on R. I. Holocaust Memorial." Providence Journal, May 12, 2015.
Gutterman, Leslie Y. "We Have Choice of Courage." Providence Journal, August 26, 2015.
Parker, Paul Edward. "Holocaust Memorial a Place to Reflect." Providence Journal, August 27, 2015.
Fitzpatrick, Edward. "Ghost of 38 Studios Haunts Ballpark Proposal. Absolutely!" Providence Journal, August 30, 2015.
Ziner, Karen Lee. "News Digest. Vigil on Sunday at Holocaust Memorial." Providence Journal, March 5, 2017.
Mooney, Tom. "Rally at Holocaust Memorial Condemns Anti-Semitic Act.’ Providence Journal, March 6, 2017.
Tempera, Jacqueline. "Holocaust Survivors: Forever be Vigilant." Providence Journal, August 29, 2017.
Gross, Esther. "WaterFire Highlights Tolerance." Providence Journal, August 31, 2017.
Rights Holder
Department of Art, Culture, Tourism, City of Providence
Geolocation
Citation
Bonner, Jonathan, 1947- (sculptor)
Green, Will, 1951- (landscape architect), “Rhode Island Holocaust Memorial,” Commemorative Works of Providence, accessed March 31, 2026, https://commemorativeworks.artculturetourism.com/items/show/69.