Incubator escapee wiki

National Statuary Hall Collection

Article Discussion

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates

File:National Statuary Hall Collection.jpg
Part of the National Statuary Hall Collection.
File:Car of history.jpg
Presiding over the Hall, Carlo Franzoni's 1819 sculptural chariot clock, the Car of History depicts Clio, the Greek muse of history.

The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol is composed of statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history. Limited to two statues per state, the collection was originally set up in the old Hall of the House of Representatives, which was then renamed National Statuary Hall. The expanding collection has since been spread throughout the Capitol and its visitor center.

With the addition of New Mexico's second statue in 2005, the collection is now complete with 100 statues contributed by 50 states, plus two from the District of Columbia (see Statues of the National Statuary Hall Collection). Since Congress authorized replacements in 2000, thirteen states have replaced at least one of their original two statues. In 2022, Kansas became the first state to replace both of its statues; it has been joined by Arkansas and Nebraska.

HistoryEdit

The concept of a National Statuary Hall originated in the middle of the nineteenth century, before the completion of the present House wing in 1857. At that time, the House of Representatives moved into its new larger chamber and the old vacant chamber became a thoroughfare between the Rotunda and the House wing. Suggestions for the use of the chamber were made as early as 1853 by Gouverneur Kemble, a former member of the House, who pressed for its use as a gallery of historical paintings. The space between the columns seemed too limited for this purpose, but it was well suited for the display of busts and statuary.

On April 19, 1864, Representative Justin S. Morrill asked: "To what end more useful or grand, and at the same time simple and inexpensive, can we devote it [the Chamber] than to ordain that it shall be set apart for the reception of such statuary as each State shall elect to be deserving of in this lasting commemoration?" His proposal to create a National Statuary Hall became law on July 2, 1864:

<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />

[...] the President is hereby authorized to invite each and all the States to provide and furnish statues, in marble or bronze, not exceeding two in number for each State, of deceased persons who have been citizens thereof, and illustrious for their historic renown or for distinguished civic or military services such as each State may deem to be worthy of this national commemoration; and when so furnished the same shall be placed in the Old Hall of the House of Representatives, in the Capitol of the United States, which is set apart, or so much thereof as may be necessary, as a national statuary hall for the purpose herein indicated.{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

— {{#if:|, in }}Template:Comma separated entries

}}

{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Blockquote with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | author | by | char | character | cite | class | content | multiline | personquoted | publication | quote | quotesource | quotetext | sign | source | style | text | title | ts }}

Originally, all state statues were placed in National Statuary Hall. However, the aesthetic appearance of the Hall began to suffer from overcrowding until, in 1933, the situation became unbearable. At that time the Hall held 65 statues, which stood, in some cases, three deep. More important, the structure of the chamber would not support the weight of any more statues. Therefore, in 1933 Congress passed a resolution that:

<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />

the Architect of the Capitol, upon the approval of the Joint Committee on the Library, with the advice of the Commission of Fine Arts, is hereby authorized and directed to relocate within the Capitol any of the statues already received and placed in Statuary Hall, and to provide for the reception and location of the statues received hereafter from the States.{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

— {{#if:|, in }}Template:Comma separated entries

}}

{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Blockquote with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | author | by | char | character | cite | class | content | multiline | personquoted | publication | quote | quotesource | quotetext | sign | source | style | text | title | ts }}

Under authority of this resolution it was decided that only one statue from each state should be placed in Statuary Hall. The others would be given prominent locations in designated areas and corridors of the Capitol. A second rearrangement of the statues was made in 1976 by authorization of the Joint Committee on the Library. To improve the crowded appearance of the collection, thirty-eight statues were rearranged in Statuary Hall according to height and material. Statues representing ten of the thirteen original colonies were moved to the Central Hall of the East Front Extension on the first floor of the Capitol. The remainder of the statues were distributed throughout the Capitol, mainly in the Hall of Columns and the connecting corridors of the House and Senate wings. Legislation was introduced in 2005 that would authorize the collection to include one statue from each U.S. Territory; it did not pass.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Each statue is the gift of a state, not of an individual or group of citizens. Proceedings for the donation of a statue usually begin in the state legislature with the enactment of a resolution that names the citizen to be commemorated and cites his or her qualifications, specifies a committee or commission to represent the state in selecting the sculptor, and provides for a method of obtaining the necessary funds to carry the resolution into effect. In recent years, the statues have been unveiled during ceremonies in the Rotunda and displayed there for up to six months. They are then moved to a permanent location approved by the Joint Committee on the Library. An act of Congress (Template:Usc), enacted in 2000, permits states to provide replacements and repossess the earlier one.

A special act Template:Webarchive of Congress, Template:USPL, signed on December 1, 2005, directed the Joint Committee on the Library to obtain a statue of Rosa Parks and to place the statue in the United States Capitol in National Statuary Hall in a suitable permanent location. On February 27, 2013, Parks became the first African-American woman to have her likeness in the Hall.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Though located in Statuary Hall, Parks' statue is not part of the Collection; neither Alabama (her birth state) nor Michigan (where she lived most of her later years) commissioned it, and both states are represented in the Collection by other statues.

In 2002, Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton introduced a bill in Congress to allow the District of Columbia to place two statues in the collection, in parity with the 50 states. While the bill was not enacted, the district commissioned two statues, one of abolitionist Frederick Douglass, the other of D.C. master planner Pierre L'Enfant, and housed them in One Judiciary Square in hopes of eventually placing them in the Capitol. A 2010 version of the bill to accept D.C.'s statues stalled after House Republicans began adding amendments in an attempt to soften D.C.'s gun laws.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A 2012 compromise bill led to the placement of the statue of Douglass, but not L'Enfant, on June 19, 2013.<ref name=":3" /> Norton continued to pursue legislation to move the second statue to the Capitol.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The statue of L'Enfant was later placed in the Capitol in February 2022.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Amid national debates about Confederate statues and monuments, Democrats in Congress introduced bills in 2017 to remove statues of people who served in the Confederacy from the National Statuary Hall Collection, but the legislation made no progress.<ref name=":5">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, and Virginia have passed resolutions to remove statues of individuals with Confederate ties,<ref name=":6">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":4" /><ref name="ARBatesCash" /> although Alabama retained a second statue of a Confederate veteran.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> North Carolina and Arkansas have authorized replacing statues of Jim Crow-era politicians with racist views.<ref name="ARBatesCash" /><ref name=":5" />

DemographicsEdit

WomenEdit

There are fourteen statues of women representing states in the collection:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The statue of Rosa Parks in the Capitol does not represent a state and "is not a part of the National Statuary Hall Collection."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A statue of Barbara Johns (Virginia) has been authorized.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Native Hawaiian and Native American membersEdit

The collection includes statues of Hawaiian king Kamehameha I and of six Native Americans: Popé (New Mexico), Will Rogers (Oklahoma), Sequoyah (Oklahoma), Sacagawea (North Dakota), Washakie (Wyoming), and Sarah Winnemucca (Nevada). Nebraska has authorized the addition of a statue of Chief Standing Bear,<ref name=":1" /> and Washington has authorized a statue of Billy Frank Jr.<ref name=":7">Template:Cite news</ref>

Members of Hispanic descentEdit

Dionisio "Dennis" Chávez, the first person of Hispanic descent to be elected to a full term in the U.S. Senate, represents New Mexico. Saint Junípero Serra, born in Spain, was a Spanish-era founder of the California mission system.

African-American membersEdit

In February 2013, a statue of Rosa Parks was placed as the first full-length statue of an African American in the Capitol. It did not represent a particular state, but was commissioned directly by Congress.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A few months later, on Juneteenth, 2013, a statue of Frederick Douglass was placed in the Capitol Visitor Center as a gift of the District of Columbia.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite news</ref> There are also busts of Martin Luther King Jr. (1986) and Sojourner Truth (2009).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Until 2018, no state had designated an African American as one of its two statues. In March 2018, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed legislation to replace the statue of Edmund Kirby Smith with one of African American educator and civil rights activist Mary McLeod Bethune.<ref name="Bethune">Template:Cite news</ref> The new statue was unveiled July 13, 2022.<ref name="BethuneAOC" /> In April 2019, Arkansas also authorized a statue of Daisy Bates, which was installed in May 2024.<ref name="ARBatesCash" /> In December 2020, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced that the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee would be replaced by a statue of African American civil rights activist Barbara Johns.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Catholic clergy and nunEdit

The collection includes Father Damien from Hawaiʻi, Father Jacques Marquette from Wisconsin, Father Junipero Serra from California, and Father Eusebio Kino from Arizona, as well as Mother Joseph Pariseau from Washington.

ConfederatesEdit

The collection contains several statues of leaders of the Confederate States of America.<ref name="Brockell">Template:Cite news</ref> These include CSA President Jefferson Davis and Vice President Alexander Stephens and Confederate soldiers, most in Confederate Army uniforms: Generals Joseph Wheeler, James Z. George, Wade Hampton III, as well as Colonel Zebulon Baird Vance and former enlisted soldiers John E. Kenna and Edward Douglass White.<ref name="Brockell" />

Alabama replaced its statue of Confederate politician and army officer Jabez Curry in 2009. In 2018 the Florida legislature voted to replace its statue of Confederate general Edmund Kirby Smith with a statue of African American educator and Civil Rights activist Mary McLeod Bethune; Smith's statue was removed in 2021 ahead of the unveiling of Bethune's statue in 2022.<ref name="Bethune" /><ref name="BethuneAOC">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite tweet</ref> In 2019, Arkansas decided to replace both its statues, including the one of Uriah M. Rose, with civil rights activist Daisy Bates and Johnny Cash.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2020, Virginia decided to replace its statue of Robert E. Lee, which had stood in the collection since 1909, with one of Barbara Rose Johns Powell and the Lee statue was removed December 20–21, 2020.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A statue of Uriah M. Rose, "an attorney who sided with the Confederacy" and was the chancellor of Pulaski County, Arkansas, while Arkansas was part of the Confederacy,<ref name="Brockell" /><ref name="ARBatesCash" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> was replaced with a statue of civil rights activist Daisy Bates.

CollectionEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}

Replacement of statuesEdit

A 2000 change in the law allows a state to remove a previously placed statue from the collection and replace it with another.<ref name="guidelines">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Since then, thirteen states have replaced statues and other states have either considered or passed legislation calling for replacing one or both of their statues.

ReplacementsEdit

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> The Ingalls statue was replaced overnight on July 26 and the Earhart statue was unveiled on July 27 of the same year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It is unknown what will happen with the Ingalls statue now.

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2023, a statue of author Willa Cather was installed, replacing a statue of Julius Sterling Morton.<ref name=":8">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Its sculptor, Littleton Alston, is the first Black sculptor to create a statue for the National Statuary Hall Collection.<ref name=":8" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Morton statue was relocated to a library in Nebraska City, Nebraska.

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Allen's statue was returned to his hometown of Chillicothe.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Replacement pendingEdit

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> The statue will be sculpted by Steven Weitzman and is expected to be installed in 2025.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

  • Washington: Governor Jay Inslee signed a bill in April 2021 that starts the process to replace Washington's Marcus Whitman statue with one of Billy Frank Jr.<ref name=":7" /> The design of the new statue, created by Hai Ying Wu, was unveiled in January 2024, and is expected to be installed in 2025.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Considered for replacementEdit

Rejected replacementsEdit

See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit

Template:Reflist

External linksEdit

Template:Sister project

Template:National Statuary Hall Collection Template:Washington DC landmarks Template:United States Capitol Complex Template:Coord

Retrieved from "https://zalansite.site/mediawiki/index.php?title=National_Statuary_Hall_Collection&oldid=415407"