Fountain Figure

Someone has mounted a comical figurine with outstretched arms atop the Civil War-era fountain in tiny Bleecker Park at Madison Avenue and Eagle Street.

Saucer and Egg

A saucer-like and rarely used fountain near The Egg on the east side of the Empire State Plaza's main platform.

Dream Stone

I've always been very fond of the lovely fountain in Academy Park near Eagle Street. It's elegant and refreshing (and not aging too well, but that's a story for another post). I even posed for a photo there before my senior prom.

For some reason, I vaguely associated it with Albany's Tricentennial celebrations in 1986, but a recent search through the Times Union archives shows that it was erected in 1988. Well, no one's memory is completely perfect (though I do have some pretty vivid recollections from both years)

But, as often as I've admired the fountain, I never noticed this tiny plaque - a little smaller than a bumper sticker - affixed to a rock in the low shrubbery enclosing the fountain. I found it two days ago on my way to Lodge's and wondered just what it was doing there. The name Irving Kirsch was familiar...I knew he was a local attorney and philanthropist who passed away in 1999...but the little plaque didn't give a hint to why it was there.

Another search through the archives reveals that, in 1989, Mr. Kirsch donated $15,000 to help cover the expense of installing the fountain.

Oh, and for what it's worth, I completely agree with the sentiment on the plaque.