Have you noticed the statue of the woman sitting on a bench outside the former Naperville Barnes & Noble is missing?
The city of Naperville plans to return the statue of Genevieve Towsley back to the corner of Chicago Avenue and Washington Street later this year.
Who was Genevieve Towsley?
Genevieve Towsley was a journalist and historian who wrote for the Naperville Sun, according to the Century Walk website. Her main focus as a writer was learning about the community, its history, and its people.
Towsley also published a book with the Naperville Sun titled “A View of Historic Naperville from the Sky-Lines,” a collection of her work from the newspaper’s Sky-Lines column. The book was first printed in 1975.
In the introduction, she notes, “Naperville has a rich heritage! It is my hope that this book will help preserve it.”
She died in 1996 at the age of 88, after having chronicled the stories of Naperville for almost 50 years.
When was the statue made?
The bronze sculpture, simply titled “Genevieve,” was created by artist Pamela S. Carpenter as part of Naperville’s Century Walk and was installed in 1999.
It depicts Towsley sitting on a bench while writing in her notebook. Its placement in the center of downtown Naperville resulted in many a passerby taking a seat next to Towsley, sometimes snapping a selfie.
Where is the statue of Genevieve Towsley usually found outside the former Barnes & Noble?
The statue was removed by the city’s Public Works Department to protect it during the Washington Street Bridge construction, according to Naperville City Clerk Dawn Portner.
Portner added that the city intends to return the statue to its original location once construction is complete.
Bill Novack, Naperville’s Director of Transportation, Engineering, and Development (TED), said earlier this year that construction of the Washington Street Bridge is expected to be completed by May or early June.
Photo courtesy: Century Walk
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