Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden

By Todd Moning
FMCA.com editor

The Cat in the Hat
Fox in Socks
Green Eggs and Ham
Oh, the Places You'll go

These children's book titles may conjure images of reading to your children or grandchildren. Or of someone reading the rhythmic stories to you.

The Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden in Springfield, Mass., will spark more childlike memories. Life-size bronze character sculptures form a permanent monument celebrating the creations of Theodor Geisel, better known by his pen name, Dr. Seuss.

Dr. Seuss was born in Springfield in 1904, and grew up on Fairfield Street in the city's Forest Park neighborhood.

Favorite characters
When Dr. Seuss died in 1991, he had written and illustrated 44 children's books. His works also inspired 11 children's TV specials, a Broadway musical and several full-length motion pictures.

The memorial consists of three sculptural groupings of Seuss' characters, including the Grinch, the Lorax, Yertle the Turtle and Gertrude McFuzz.

One display portrays Dr. Seuss working at an exact replica of his drawing table, with the Cat in the Hat standing at his side.

Another, called Horton Court, depicts 14-foot-tall Horton the Elephant stepping out of an open book, accompanied by Thing One, Thing Two, Sam-I-Am, Sally and her brother, and Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose.

Lark Grey Dimond-Cates, who is also Geisel's stepdaughter, created the sculptures for the Springfield Library & Museums Association.

Backed by public and private funding and with the support of Sr. Seuss' wife, Audrey Geisel, the $6.2-million memorial opened in May 2002.

Throughout the sculpture garden, winding granite pathways and imaginative landscaping are prominent.

Hometown inspiration
Springfield influences abound in Dr. Seuss books. Street names, character names and drawings of buildings are rooted in his hometown.

"By creating the memorial, we hope to spark imagination and creativity in a new generation," said Joseph Carvalho, president of the Springfield Museums Association. "Dr. Seuss drew much of his inspiration from his own neighborhood in Springfield. It's all still here, just waiting for creative minds to discover it."

Museums surround Seuss
Admission to the Dr. Seuss National Memorial is free. It's located at the Springfield Museums, on Edwards Street off Chestnut Street in downtown Springfield. Hours: daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. April through October and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. October through March.

Four museums, grouped around a central Quadrangle behind the Springfield Library, surround the Dr. Seuss memorial: the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum, the Springfield Science Museum, the Connecticut Valley Historical Museum, and the Museum of Fine Arts. Several of the museums feature Seuss-related exhibits.

You may purchase museum tickets at the Springfield Museums Welcome Center, on Edwards Street.

Parking, campgrounds
Motorhomers should take a towed car or public transportation to the memorial. Free parking is available in the Springfield Museums' lots on Edwards Street, but these lots cannot accommodate motorhomes.

Southwick Acres Campground and Sodom Mountain Campground are located in Southwick, about 11 miles southwest of Springfield. The campgrounds are close to Six Flags New England in Agawam.

Dr. Seuss National Memorial
www.catinthehat.org

The Dr. Seuss Web Page
www.seuss.org/seuss

Greater Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau
www.valleyvisitor.com