ThesculpturedepictstheAlma Mater,personifiedbyawomaninflowingrobes,urgingontwo doughboys,one ofwhomisdying.The sculpture is set atop an inscribed base.
There are inscriptions on the exterior frieze (names of battles) and interior frieze (dedication).Above the exterior frieze circling the memorial are shields representing four branches of the military (army, navy, marines, aviation) repeated in a pattern.
A uniformed World War I soldier in a charging position, going "over the top" stands atop a stone boulder. He wears a helmet and holds his rifle on his proper right side, thrust forward at the ready.
William Gehron & Sidney Ross, architects; Lee Lawrie, sculptor
The Soldier's and Sailors' bridge was completed in 1930 as the principal entrance to Center City and the State Capitol Complex from the east, terminating at Fisher Plaza. The bridge was named "Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Bridge" in honor of the service of Pennsylvania's soldiers and sailors. It connects the East Harrisburg area to Capitol Hill.
The bridge is made up of seventeen arches with towering pylons at the western end which dramatize bridge’s gateway importance. The pylons are 145 feet high and 16 feet wide. Two eagle figures (Lee Lawrie, sculptor) are perched at the top of each pylon, signifying the Union of the United States. One pylon represents the Army, and the other represents the Navy. The four faces of the pylons are inscribed with the dates of eight of the wars the United States had participated in up to that point.
The keystone to each arch on the bridge contains stylized carvings by Lee Lawrie of various implements of warfare that were developed during WWI. These include tanks, battleships, hand grenades, and aerial bombs.
