Ohio Women’s Monument to Be Unveiled This Fall, Panelists Say It Honors Collective Action

Panelists at a Columbus Metropolitan Club forum on the Ohio Women’s Monument said the public memorial will be unveiled this fall on the Statehouse grounds and is designed to honor collective, multigenerational contributions by Ohio women.

"They are dynamic figures on top of large granite columns," artist Brenda Council said, describing nine figures she calls "women of action" who are meant to represent different eras and tactics of the women’s movement rather than named individuals. Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who helped assemble an administrative working group, said the monument grew out of a bipartisan commission formed as part of centennial suffrage activities.

Panelists described the monument as both a work of public art and an educational installation: granite pedestals will carry contextual quotes and names tied to specific decades, and organizers hope to connect the monument to school curricula and an expanded Statehouse gallery experience. Charlie Moses, chair of the Capitol Square Foundation, said the monument will occupy the South Portico plaza so it is visible to theatergoers, school groups and transit riders.

Organizers said $2,000,000 has been raised to date and the project has already paid for construction; they plan to raise additional funds to create an endowment for programming and long-term maintenance. The unveiling is planned for this fall, with details about the dedication ceremony to be announced to the public.

Why it matters: Panelists framed the project as an effort to correct a historical imbalance — they cited research showing a small percentage of public statuary depicts real women — and as a tool for civic education for the roughly 70,000 students who tour the Statehouse each year.