Legion Memorial Park

A splendid allegorical World War I memorial entitled Sacrifice by Allen George Newman at Legion Memorial Park in the Brighton Heights neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA. Erected in 1922, the triangular site has three monuments dedicated to the Brighton Heights citizens who served in the military in World War I, World War II, and the wars since then of the Korean, Viet Nam, and Gulf Wars.  

The ivory-colored granite was gray from embedded soot and dust and caulking between the stone pieces and along the plaque edges had long failed. The large bronze plaques on three sides of the monument were badly degraded, showing green, oxidized and corroded surfaces.  

The stone was cleaned with masonry cleaners and rinsed with a pressure washer.  Degraded caulk was dug out of all seams, and white butyl caulk was neatly applied in the gap.  Then all the raised lettering was brightened, and the plaques spray coated with tinted synthetic lacquers.  Gold leaf and gold-toned lacquer were applied to the large laurel leaf on the back plaque.

The gray granite Honor Roll flagpole base at Legion Memorial Park in the Brighton Heights neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA was dirty and stained from embedded soot and dust and past restoration attempts.  The surfaces of the bronze plaques were degraded, blanched and oxidized. The stone was cleaned with masonry cleaners and pressure washed with water.  The seams were recaulked with white butyl caulk.  The lettering on the plaques was brightened and after extensive masking, the plaques were spray coated with tinted synthetic lacquer.  The tinted lacquer was removed from the raised lettering on solvent-soaked blocks. 

The granite steps leading up to the site from Brighton Avenue were cleaned with masonry cleaners on scrub brushes and rinsed with a pressure washer.  The unique stone bus shelter at Legion Park was also cleaned. 

Client:  City of Pittsburgh Office of Public Art & Civic Design