The Veiled Lady Monument
On Our Radar $
Why it’s on our radar
Elmwood’s most famous monument isn’t a name — it’s a feeling carved in marble. The “Veiled Lady” is a masterwork by Randolph Rogers, the celebrated sculptor behind the U.S. Capitol’s bronze Columbus Doors and the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument in Campus Martius. Joshua Waterman commissioned it — a small fortune at the time — as a memorial to his wife Eliza, who died in 1865; the veil draped over the mourning figure is cut so finely it looks like real cloth over stone.
A ferocious 1919 windstorm toppled and cracked her, and the repairs are still visible up close. Naturally, she comes with a ghost story — Eliza’s spirit is said to roam the grounds — which makes her a fitting stop on any Elmwood wander. On our list.
