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COLUMBUS, IND. - How does a town of 39,000 people in rural Indiana end up being ranked sixth in the nation for architectural significance by the American Institute of Architects?
The answer is by having more than more than 70 buildings and pieces of public art by internationally noted architects and artists, among them I.M. Pei, Eliel Saarinen, Eero Saarinen, Richard Meier, Harry Weese, Dale Chihuly and Henry Moore.
Entering town, the first sign of architectural wonders to come is the glorious red Second Street Bridge. This cable-stayed bridge, completed in 1999, is the first of its kind in North America. The 40 cables that support the structure are in the shape of a fan.
This small, Midwestern town located in the center of a triangle formed by Indianapolis, Louisville, and Cincinnati boasts no fewer than six National Historic Landmarks - nationally significant historic places designated by the Secretary of the Interior. In 2005, the National Trust for Historic Preservation placed Columbus on its list of the "Dozen Distinctive Destinations in the U.S." Smithsonian magazine declared the city a "veritable museum of modern architecture."
In the architect's ranking, Columbus falls just under Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Washington.
Much of the credit goes to the late J. Irwin Miller, an entrepreneur with an appreciation for modern architecture. His Cummins Engine Co., a local diesel engine manufacturer, remains the city's largest employer.
Miller established the Cummins Foundation and in 1957 made an offer that the foundation would pay all architects' fees for new public buildings in Columbus if the city selected the firms from a list of the world's top modern architects. The program began with schools (some of...