
Modeled
after the Arch of Titus in Rome, the Dewey Arch was carved in about six
weeks by 28 renowned sculptors. The arch was topped by a quadriga
sculpted by J.Q.A. Ward, with four seahorses pulling a ship. Lower down
were portrait sculptures of such naval heroes as Commodore John Paul
Jones, Commodore Matthew C. Perry, and Admiral David Glasgow Farragut.
The arch and six double-trophy columns were lit by electric lights at
night.
The Commodore directed his command vessel, the U.S.S. Olympia, to Manila Bay in the Philippines, where she was victorious over the rotting wood ships of the Spanish Armada. This stunning naval victory over Spain established the U.S. as a global military power, and elevated Commodore Dewey as the country’s greatest hero.
Once city leaders realized Dewey was coming to New York in September, plans were made for a magnificent two-day tribute that would include a grandiose parade on September 30, a fireworks display, and illumination of the harbor. It was also decided to erect a ceremonial arch and colonnade on Fifth Avenue at 24th Street to permanently honor the war hero. The city hired architect Charles R. Lamb, who, along with fellow members of the National Sculpture Society, designed the $26,000, 100-foot-tall Dewey Arch.

Commodore
Dewey, together with New York Mayor Robert A. Van Wyck, led the grand
parade in a horse-drawn carriage, a beautiful Victoria pulled by four
sturdy bays. Forty-three other coaches, filled with political and naval
dignitaries, followed, along with almost 35,000 military personnel.
A Home for Olympia and Her Kittens
So what does all this historic stuff have to do with a cat and her kittens? The temporary construction of the Dewey Arch is the key to this Christmas cat tale.
Following the celebrations in September 1899, the arch began to quickly deteriorate. Passing vehicles and carriage wheels made several large holes in the base of the double trophy-columns, and souvenir seekers had also begun chipping off pieces of the arch (bits sold for 15 cents each). But that was just fine for one large grey cat that roamed the streets near Madison Square — a hole in the corner of one of the columns would be the perfect place to give birth to her kittens.
According to the true story, two weeks before Christmas the stray feline took refuge in the hole. The following morning, the cabmen who were stationed across from the Fifth Avenue Hotel heard mewing sounds coming from within. When they investigated, they found the mother cat – whom they named Olympia – nursing four newborn kittens. The kittens were adopted by the cabmen, who named them Dewey, George, Manila, and Cavite.

The cabmen named the mother cat Olympia, after the flagship of Commodore George Dewey at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War in 1898.
During the two weeks leading to Christmas, the cabmen and stalwart policemen guarded over the new cat family, protecting them from the newsboys and thousands of other curious strangers who tried to either grab or taunt them. The men also kept a constant lookout for Christmas shoppers who attempted to kidnap the kittens. Olympia often left the niche to stroll down Fifth Avenue on her own, although on one of her ventures she carried a kitten in her mouth and presented it to one of the cabmen.
This fabulous video from 1899 shows all the traffic at the arch:
On Christmas Day, the cabmen and policemen presented Olympia with a special holiday dinner. The New York Times called her “the happiest cat in New York this Christmas,” noting her meal would comprise several courses of “the most luxurious viands to be secured on Fifth Avenue.” The kittens also received a present (although I’m not sure they were too thrilled by this): The cabmen said that once they were old enough, they would all go for a ride in an automobile.

This view of the Dewey Arch shows the double-trophy columns and the edge of Madison Square Park.
There are no reports on how long Olympia and her kittens called the Arch their home, but the structure was also apparently home to homeless men in the warmer months. On July 15, 1900, the Times reported many gaping holes in the columns were occupied by transient men (the police called it the Dewey Arch Hotel). In August 1900 The New York Evening Post called the deteriorating arch an “eyesore and disgrace” that was “becoming a public danger.”
An attempt to raise money to have the arch rebuilt with more durable materials failed, and Colonel William Conant Church announced that all donations would be returned. At a meeting of the Municipal Assembly in November 1900, a resolution was passed unanimously by both houses authorizing Commissioner James P. Keating of the Department of Streets and Highways to spend the money appropriated for repairing the structure to tear it down.

William
Conant Church (1836 – 1917) served in the Civil War and was a life
member and director of the New York Zoological Society. In 1900, he was
in charge of a citizen’s Arch Perpetuation Committee that fought to make
the Dewey Arch a permanent structure.

One
of the four Battle Groups that were temporarily preserved from the
Dewey Arch. The groups included Call to Arms, Battle, Return of the
Victors, and Peace.

As
the photo shows, Gilbert placed two of the arch’s battle group
sculptures on either side of the Art Palace at the South Carolina
Inter-State and West Indian Exposition. Photo: George Grantham Bain News
Service