 Beneficence and colonnade | |
 | |
| 40°11′54″N85°24′37″W / 40.198272°N 85.410278°W | |
| Location | Old Quad Ball State University |
|---|---|
| Designer | Daniel Chester French (Statue) Richard Henry Dana (Promenade) |
| Type | Memorial Statue |
| Material | Bronze |
| Opening date | 1937 |
| Website | www |
Beneficence is a 1937 bronze statue on the campus of Ball State University, located in Muncie, Indiana. The statue, by sculptor Daniel Chester French, is referred to as Benny by students.
In 1927, the Muncie Chamber of Commerce proposed building a memorial to express gratitude on behalf of Muncie and Ball State University for the Ball Brothers' extensive generosity to the community. The monetary value of the Balls' philanthropies in Muncie totaled $7 million by the monument's completion in 1937. [1]
The Chamber commissioned renowned sculptor Daniel Chester French, who sculpted the statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. [2] Beneficence was chosen for the statue because it aptly described the feelings of the community and the actions of the Ball Brothers. French entrusted architect Richard Henry Dana to choose a location for the statue and to design the surrounding promenade. [3]
The price tag for Beneficence, completed in 1930, was approximately $50,000. The progress toward installation crawled during the Great Depression as funds for the project became scarce. More than 11,000 individuals, including children, donated money to assist in completing the memorial, and Beneficence was dedicated on September 26, 1937. [4] Sealed inside the Beneficence is a book containing all donors who contributed to the memorial's completion. Although the project was the last for French, neither he nor Dana lived to see its dedication. [5] The statue, affectionately known as Benny, symbolizes the selflessness of the five brothers in their service to the community. [6] It is so entwined in the university's culture that its image is part of the school seal.
Beneficence's hand stretches to welcome new students to campus. The treasure box she holds in her other arm represents the treasure education can offer. Her wings represent the flight into the world when students graduate. The five Corinthian columns behind the statue represent the Ball Brothers, for whom the university is named. [7]
Beneficence resembles earlier examples of French's work, such as Angel of the Waters, part of a memorial to businessman and philanthropist George Robert White in the Boston Public Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, and The Spirit of Life in Saratoga Springs, New York. The model for The Spirit of Life statue was Audrey Munson, so it is said that Munson was referenced for Beneficence.
In the same year Beneficence was dedicated, 1937, Daniel Chester French's protege, Edith Barretto Stevens Parsons, cast another famous statue on campus, the Frog Baby Fountain.
Some students believe one way to find true love is to sit under Benny and kiss them with closed eyes. If Benny's wings flap, then the love is true; if no flapping occurs, then the love is not meant to be. [8] Another myth suggests that the severed heads of each of the five Ball Brothers rest in individual urns on the top of the respective pillar; [9] however, all five brothers are buried at Beech Grove Cemetery in Muncie. [10] Another legend states that a female student is not officially a coed until she is kissed by a male student beneath the statue. [11] Another campus myth states if a virgin were ever to cross Benny's path, she would come to life and fly away.
The University of Idaho is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho. It is the state's land-grant and primary research university, and the lead university in the Idaho Space Grant Consortium. The University of Idaho was the state's sole university for 71 years, until 1963. Its College of Law, established in 1909, was first accredited by the American Bar Association in 1925.
Muncie is an incorporated city and the seat of Delaware County, Indiana, United States. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the prominent Delaware Chief, it is located in East Central Indiana, about 50 miles (80 km) northeast of Indianapolis. At the 2020 United States Census, the city's population was 65,195, down from 70,085 in the 2010 Census. It is the principal city of the Muncie Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Delaware County. The city is also included in the Indianapolis–Carmel–Muncie, IN Combined Statistical Area.
Daniel Chester French was an American sculptor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He is best known for his 1874 sculpture The Minute Man in Concord, Massachusetts, and his 1920 monumental statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
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Ball Corporation is an American company headquartered in Westminster, Colorado. It is best known for its early production of glass jars, lids, and related products used for home canning. Since its founding in Buffalo, New York, in 1880, when it was known as the Wooden Jacket Can Company, the Ball company has expanded and diversified into other business ventures, including aerospace technology. It eventually became the world's largest manufacturer of recyclable metal beverage and food containers.
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Frog Baby Fountain is a statue set in the middle of a fountain on the Ball State University campus. It is known as a sign of good luck and is a popular meeting place. The Frog Baby statue was cast by Edith Barretto Stevens Parsons in 1937 and has been moved several times prior to becoming what it is known as today. Frank C. Ball donated the statue to the university and it remained in the Ball State University Museum of Art until it became damaged by excessive rubbing by students, and was then packed away. In 1993, Frog Baby was restored and placed in a fountain where it resides today. The fountain is dedicated to Alexander Bracken, the son-in-law of Frank C. Ball, who was responsible for Ball State's rapid growth after World War II.
The David Owsley Museum of Art (DOMA) is a university art museum located in the Fine Arts building on the campus of Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, the United States of America. The museum's name was changed on October 6, 2011, from the Ball State Museum of Art to the David Owsley Museum of Art in honor of David T. Owsley, grandson of Frank C. Ball, to recognize his donation of over 2,300 works of art and planned gift of $5 million. Since departments within the Fine Arts Building relocated to other areas on Ball State's campus, the museum has expanded its galleries, beginning in early-mid-2012 and ending in 2013.
The Alexander M. Bracken Library is the main library on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Opened in September 1975 and designed by Walter Scholer and Associates and the Perkins and Will Partnership of Chicago, the 320,000-square-foot facility is located in the geographic center of the Ball State University campus and is distinguishable for its unique, Brutalist architecture.
Teachers College is an academic college of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Teachers College is housed in a 10-story, 138 feet (42 m) building which is the second tallest in Delaware County. It is home to six academic departments: Early Childhood, Youth, and Family Studies, Educational Leadership, Educational Psychology, Educational Studies, Elementary Education, and Special Education. It also houses the Office of the Dean and the Office of Teacher Education Services and Clinical Practice.
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