Alexander Hamilton Stephens
The statue in 2013
ArtistGutzon Borglum
MediumMarble sculpture
SubjectAlexander H. Stephens
LocationWashington, D.C., United States

Alexander H. Stephens is a marble sculpture commemorating the American politician of the same name by Gutzon Borglum,[1] installed in the United States Capitol as part of the National Statuary Hall Collection.[2] The statue was gifted by the state of Georgia in 1927.[3]

Stephens earned his place in the National Statuary Hall Collection by being elected to the US House of Representatives both before and after the Civil War and serving as the Vice-President of the Confederate States of America.[4] At the unveiling of Stephen's statue on December 8, 1927, William J. Harris said of him, "His public career shows him time and again placing his loyalty to principles above subservience to political party; time and again refusing to follow where he thought principles were being set aside for party purposes."[5]

On March 31, 1861, Stephens delivered the Cornerstone Speech which defended slavery as a just result of the inferiority of the "black race".[6] Because of this, in 2017, some of Stephens's descendants asked that the statue be removed from the Capitol.[7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Taliaferro, John (9 October 2007). Great White Fathers: The Story of the Obsessive Quest to Create Mount Rushmore. PublicAffairs. ISBN 9781586486112. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Google Books.
  2. ↑ Ford, Matt (14 August 2017). "Why Are Confederate Statues Still Displayed in the Capitol?". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  3. ↑ "Alexander Hamilton Stephens". Architect of the Capitol. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  4. ↑ Viles, Philip H., National Statuary Hall: Guidebook for a Walking Tour, Published by Philip H. Viles, Tulsa, OK, 1997 p. 51
  5. ↑ Murdock, Myrtle Chaney, National Statuary Hall in the Nation's Capitol, Monumental Press, Inc., Washington, D.C., 1955 p. 27
  6. ↑ "Modern History Sourcebook: Alexander H. Stephens (1812–1883): Cornerstone Address, March 21, 1861". Fordham University. Archived from the original on 27 May 2020. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
  7. ↑ Suggs, Ernie (25 August 2017). "Descendants of Confederate VP Want His Statue Out of US Capitol". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on 18 June 2020. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
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