FOR MOST OF its history, a public fountain positioned on a patch of land bordered by Virginia Avenue and Shelby and Prospect streets has served as the centerpiece of the Fountain Square neighborhood. But what many don’t realize is that it hasn’t always been the same fountain. The original one, a rather generic specimen ordered from a Pennsylvania company, was erected in 1889, quickly lending the neighborhood its name. In those days, the immediate environs hosted a streetcar turnaround and terminus, which loaned the area a second, unofficial name: The End. Surmounted by the statue of a girl (traditionally held to be the Greek goddess of youth, Hebe) and nicknamed Lady Spray, the fountain served as a drinking spot for both horses and people, as well as the default meeting place for the German, Irish, and Italian immigrants who settled the area. Since local merchants and residents helped pay for it, it was sometimes also called the Subscription Fountain. It was destroyed in the late 1910s, allegedly by a careless truck driver. Its replacement, featuring a sculpture of a pioneer family by artist Myra Reynolds Richards, was dedicated in 1924. By 1954, the traffic in the neighborhood had increased exponentially, so the city, stating that the area had grown too hectic, moved the fountain to Garfield Park. The pioneers remained there until 1969, when community pressure brought them back to Fountain Square. In 2009, they moved again to the newly minted Pioneer Plaza, a stone’s throw from their original location, and a new sculpture, purchased from Robinson Ironworks in Alabama and selected because of its resemblance to the truck-shattered Lady Spray, was installed in their place. There she remains to this day—and hopefully for many more days to come.
