Official name: Genius of the Waters Built: 1869-1871 Designed by: August von Kreling Renovated: 1970 Renovated: 1999-2000 Type: Monument Maximum Height: 35 feet / 11 meters Location: Fountain Square, Cincinnati, United States
M any cities define themselves around a center point. Not necessarily a geographic center, but a spiritual or iconic landmark. In Cincinnati, the Tyler Davidson Fountain is the heart of the city. Reverence for the fountain is such that it might as well pump the city's blood as water. The fountain is named after Tyler Davidson, a hardware store owner and city leader who first decided the city needed a fountain. He died before his dream could be made real. But his brother-in-law, and business partner, Henry Probasco carried on his vision. Its was Probasco who commissioned a Bavarian artist to create a fountain celebrating water itself. The result is the "Genius of the Waters" a nine-foot-tall personification of the element with water streaming from her hands. She is surrounded by four adult figures each depicting practical uses for water. Those figures are surrounded by four children illustrating the pleasures of water. The entire affair is surrounded by panels showing the industrial uses of water, and finally there are four drinking fountains.
In the winter, when the water is turned off, twinkling lights take the place of the showers of water that fall from the fountain's hands. The Lighting of the Fountain ceremony is accompanied by a huge party downtown.
When the fountain was initially connected to the water supply, there was not enough pressure to make it spew out of the hands. A separate water line was dug from Fountain Square to the old reservoir (now under Eden Park) to increase the pressure.
1970 - The fountain is renovated.
1999-2000 - The fountain undergoes a major renovation repairing cracks, corrosion, and damage done during the 1970 repairs.
