Following through on commitment to honor Hamilton County’s fallen firefighters

In the fall of 2008, the Hamilton County Fallen Firefighters Memorial Committee was formed after conversations with members of both career and volunteer fire departments in Hamilton County, who all expressed a desire to honor the then three Hamilton County firefighters who had given their life in the line of duty.

Since the committee’s creation, two additional Hamilton County firefighters have passed away, bringing the total to be honored to five. The committee’s vision is to honor these fallen heroes on the local level in the county seat.

The committee has worked with artists and members of the community to design a memorial that will best illustrate what firefighters do as all-hazard responders. The use of bronze statues and various stones native to Indiana will be used to create a memorial in a common space that truly honors those who gave all to help their community and their fellow citizens.

In addition, a steel beam artifact from the rubble of the World Trade Center (WTC) tragedy will be incorporated in this memorial as a prominent reminder of the terrible loss of life that took place on September 11, 2001, and those who have subsequently died as a result in the years that followed.

In March 2009, after conversations with Hamilton County Commissioners and Council members, the Hamilton County Fallen Firefighters Memorial Committee attended a meeting of the River Walk Inc. Committee. The River Walk Committee approved a memorial to be one of the centerpieces of their county project to construct a park area on the banks of the White River adjacent to the Government and Judicial Center.

The site of the planned memorial’s location is within feet of the area where one fire fighter lost his life battling a fire in 1967.

Fallen Firefighters Memorial Timeline

• September 2008: Hamilton County Fallen Firefighters added to the State of Indiana Firefighters Memorial located next to the state capitol in Indianapolis.
• December 2008: First meeting of the Hamilton County Fallen Firefighter Memorial Committee. Tony Murray was contacted a few months prior by Hamilton County Commissioner Steve Dillinger. Riverwalk site toured.
• March 17, 2009: Members of HCFF Memorial Committee meet with the Riverwalk Committee.
• April 9, 2011: HCFF Memorial Committee accepts ownership of a four-foot steel I-beam artifact from the New York and New Jersey Port Authority. Steel will be incorporated into Memorial Plaza honoring firefighters who died on 9/11.
• October 13, 2013: Official fundraising kickoff for the HCFF Memorial.
• March 2014: Artist Nicholas Wilson of Tubac, Ariz., was commissioned by the HCFF Memorial Committee to create the centerpiece bronze statue for the memorial.
• April 29, 2016: Members of the HCFF Memorial Committee along with Richard Moulder, son of Bud Moulder, accept ownership of the bronze centerpiece statue at the Bronzesmith Foundry in Prescott, Ariz.
• April 29, 2016: Hamilton County Councilman Steve Schwartz and his wife Lori leave Bronzesmith Foundry with centerpiece statue loaded in a U-Haul truck of which U-Haul generously donated its usage to transport the centerpiece.
• May 2, 2016: Centerpiece statue arrives in downtown Noblesville.
• December 2021: Hamilton County Commissioners advise the HCFF Memorial Committee to proceed with construction of the memorial.
• June 2022: Due to cement and concrete shortages in central Indiana, the start of construction is delayed.
• June 23, 2023: Groundbreaking ceremony at the building site. Families of the fallen firefighters attend a ceremony to “move dirt to start construction.”

Memorial Plaza Features & Materials

Memorial Plaza

Plaza is to be approximately a sixty by 45-foot oval. A 20-foot diameter textured Maltese Cross of stamped and stained concrete will be situated between the centerpiece statue and the September 11 memorial, centered in the plaza oval. The area around the Maltese Cross will consist of an inner oval of two sizes of paver stones with an outer band or border of pavers.

Centerpiece Statue

Two-figure lifesize bronze statue created by Nicholas Wilson of Tubac, Ariz. Statue foundry – Bronzesmith Fine Art Foundry and Gallery located in Prescott Valley, Ariz.

Statue Pedestal

Reinforced concrete core with Indiana limestone façade and cap. Limestone engraved with poem and firefighter symbols.

Memorial Columns

Four Indiana limestone columns engraved with the names and dates of fallen firefighters. Each column will be capped with a bronze firefighter helmet.

Sept. 11 Memorial

Approximately a four-foot steel I-beam from the WTC debris pile. Research has determined that the beam is a floor joist beam from the first 10 floors of one of the towers. The beam will be mounted on a pedestal of a reinforced concrete core covered with a cast stone lid representing the WTC debris field.

Donor Recognition

• $10,000: Personalized granite or limestone Memorial Bench positioned in Memorial Plaza. Individual bronze plaque on recognition wall.
• $5,000: Name on collective bronze plaque on recognition wall. Plus, four small or two large personalized pavers.
• $1,000: Name on collective bronze plaque on recognition wall. Plus, two small or one large, personalized paver.
• $500: One large, personalized paver.
• $300: Two small, personalized pavers.
• $150: One small, personalized paver.

In addition to the recognition above, the memorial will use QR Code technology so that visitors can access donor information and information about the fallen firefighters and the memorial itself.

While much of the labor and materials will be donated, there is still a shortage of the amount needed to finish the construction. Paver sales and general fundraising are open one last time; the deadline to order pavers is Friday, June 30. You can order a paver or make a general donation at tinyurl.com/HamCoFallenFFMemorial.