I enjoyed reading Peter Strazzabosco's article on various war monuments around the city of Chicago (``Art of War," July 4, 2002). However, there is one important monument--notable for both artistic and historical reasons--which the article did not mention.  

In 1934, the Italian Fascist dictator, Benito Mussolini, sent an ancient Roman column to Chicago and gave it as a gift from the people "dell' Italia fascista". The monument can still be found in Burnham Park, at 1600 South Lake Shore Drive, just east of Soldier Field. It bears the inscription:

``Fascist Italy...presents to Chicago...[this monument] in the eleventh year of the fascist era.''* 

In gratitude to Mussolini and as a gesture of goodwill to his government, the city of Chicago renamed 7th Avenue, Balbo Drive, after the Italian Fascist air marshal, Italo Balbo, who led a squadron of planes to the city in 1933.

As the historian, Jan-Theo Bakker, writes:

``On June 30, 1933 25 sea-planes left Italy, under the command of Italo Balbo, Mussolini's air marshal, who used mass flights as a propaganda tool. The planes left from Orbetello and flew via Amsterdam, Ireland, Iceland, Labrador and Montreal. They arrived in Chicago on July 15, and were welcomed by a huge crowd."

As a propagandist, Balbo has had remarkable staying power.  To this day, 7th Avenue retains the name of Mussolini's air marshall and serves along with Mussolini's monument as a reminder of our city's cordial relations with Fascism in the 1930s.
 

Sincerely,

Ken Takata, 
 
 

Sources:

--The University of Newcastle upon Tyne at http://www.ncl.ac.uk/ostia/excavate/chicago.htm

--Chicago Historical Society at http://www.chicagohistory.org/history/century/cent5.html