Joy smiles in the fountain

There are some pieces of Mansfield's history that just feel extra special. For many of us Mansfielders, the Vasbinder Fountain has always been one of them. 

David and Jane Vasbinder were siblings, and by all accounts, Jane loved city life. David purchased her a home at the corner of Park Avenue West and Mulberry Street, just a short walk from Central Park. Together, they owned several pieces of property throughout Richland County, including the Southern Hotel on South Park Street, known then as the American House.

Jane was clearly someone who appreciated making a lasting impression.

Four years after the fountain was dedicated, historical records show that she exchanged at least partial ownership of the Southern Hotel with a monument dealer in return for the magnificent Vasbinder memorial that still stands today in Mansfield Cemetery.  She understood that beautiful places and beautiful monuments have the power to outlive us all.

That appreciation for lasting beauty wasn't reserved for her own family. Years earlier, she and David had given Mansfield a gift of its own.

When the fountain was installed in Central Park, its donor remained a mystery. Newspapers speculated for weeks about who had made such an extraordinary gift. It wasn't until the dedication ceremony on July 4, 1881, before a crowd of more than 4,000 people, that David and Jane Vasbinder were publicly revealed as the benefactors.

During that ceremony, Henry Hedges captured what everyone hoped the fountain would become:

"Here eye shall be delighted by the glittering drops and glistening jets. Here ear shall be charmed by the harmonious fall and flow. Joy smiles in the fountain, health flows in the rill..."

Those words have echoed through nearly a century and a half of Mansfield history.

David passed away only a year after the dedication. Jane lived another fifteen years.

I like to imagine her strolling from her home to the square, watching children gather around the fountain and families lingering nearby. I wonder if she ever stopped to think that, nearly 145 years later, people she would never meet would still be enjoying the gift she and her brother left behind.

The Vasbinder Fountain has endured relocations, deterioration, restoration, and generations of change. More than once, its future was uncertain. More than once, people had to decide whether it was worth saving.

Thankfully, they did. This latest restoration feels like the completion of a circle. The fountain returned to Central Park decades ago, but now it has been meticulously restored, ready once again to welcome children, families, visitors, and neighbors just as it did in 1881.

History doesn't preserve itself. Someone has to care enough to ask questions and document the answers. Deputy City Engineer Blair McClenathan did exactly that.

His detailed research uncovered newspaper accounts, photographs, engineering records, and forgotten details that transformed the fountain from a familiar landmark into a living piece of Mansfield's history. He didn't simply document a fountain. He documented why it mattered, creating a roadmap that allowed others to see its significance and invest in its future.

And then another family chose to leave its own mark on Mansfield's story. Through the Richland County Foundation, the Goin family generously provided the funding that made this restoration possible. There is something beautifully fitting about that. The fountain itself began as a gift to the people of Mansfield, and nearly 145 years later, it has been preserved through another extraordinary act of generosity.

That is what strikes me most about the Vasbinder Fountain. Its story isn't really about cast iron or flowing water. It's about people who believed Mansfield deserved beautiful things. David and Jane believed it when they gave the fountain to Mansfield. Blair believed it when he preserved its story. The Goin family believed it when they funded the restoration. Organizational support is also important, and Richland County Foundation, The City of Mansfield, Richland County Historical Society, and Downtown Mansfield, Inc all believed and supported this project along the way.

And because of each of them, another generation of Mansfield children will wonder at its beauty, another generation of families will gather around it for photographs, and another generation will quietly make memories in its shadow.

The hope is that when people pause in Central Park, they don't simply admire a restored fountain. The hope is that they see something larger, that every generation inherits a community shaped by the decisions of those who came before.

The choices we make today, whether through generosity, preservation, or simply caring enough to protect what matters, become the history someone else inherits tomorrow.

Nearly 145 years after Henry Hedges stood before thousands gathered in the square, his words feel just as true today as they did then.

"Joy smiles in the fountain," indeed.

The rededication of the Vasbinder Fountain will take place on July 4, 2026 at 11am.

Photos: Blair McClenathan, Braxton Daniels, Jennifer Kime.

For complete information and Blair's full report: https://engineering-mansfield.hub.arcgis.com/pages/vasbinder-fountain-restoration