Statue of Thomas Cass

Colonel Thomas Cass
The statue in 2017
Map
ArtistRichard E. Brooks
Year1899 (1899)
SubjectThomas Cass
LocationBoston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Coordinates42°21′09″N 71°04′08″W / 42.352602°N 71.068800°W / 42.352602; -71.068800

A statue of Thomas Cass by Richard E. Brooks,[1] called Colonel Thomas Cass,[2] is installed in Boston's Public Garden, in the U.S. state of Massachusetts.[3]

Description and history

Foundry mark

After a previous statue at the same site was found to be ugly, Brooks was commissioned to design a statue of Cass by the Boston Arts Commission in 1897.[4] The bronze sculpture was cast in 1899 and unveiled on September 22 of the same year.[5][6] It replaced a previous granite memorial of Cass.[2] The statue earned Brooks a gold medal at the Exposition Universelle of 1900.[7][8]

The statue depicts Cass in a Civil War uniform with his arms folded across his chest. It measures approximately 8 ft. x 2 ft. 4 in. x 2 ft. 4 in., and rests on a granite base measuring approximately 6 ft. 6 in. x 3 ft. 8 in. x 3 ft. 8 in.[2] The granite came from Red Beach, Maine. The artwork was surveyed as part of the Smithsonian Institution's "Save Outdoor Sculpture!" program in 1993.[2]

The monument has been recognized as an historic feature of the Public Garden, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, by the National Park Service.[9][10]

In 2009, Peters F. Stevens of the Boston Irish Reporter wrote:

A statue of Colonel Cass was erected in the Boston Public Garden, but surviving veterans of his regiment railed that the memorial was both stiff and a poor likeness of the fallen hero. The Society of the Ninth Regiment raised funds to tear down the statue and commissioned noted sculptor Richard E. Brooks to craft a bronze statue of Cass. On September 22, 1899, the striking bronze, which captured the visage and commanding presence of Colonel Thomas Cass and garnered high praise and a prestigious award for Brooks, was unveiled. It stands there today, testimony to a hero – a Boston Irish and American hero.[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ Gardner, Albert Ten Eyck (October 10, 1965). "American Sculpture: A Catalogue of the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art". New York, N.Y.: Metropolitan Museum of Art – via Google Books.
  2. ^ a b c d "Colonel Thomas Cass, (sculpture)". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
  3. ^ Acitelli, Tom (August 11, 2017). "13 hidden gems in the Public Garden and Boston Common". Curbed Boston.
  4. ^ "Statue to an Irish Hero". The Columbus Journal. January 12, 1898. p. 1. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  5. ^ "The Week In Art". The New York Times. 23 September 1899. p. 28. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  6. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-10-10. Retrieved 2019-10-10.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ^ Poyner, Fred F. IV (April 24, 2017). Seattle Public Sculptors: Twelve Makers of Monuments, Memorials and Statuary, 1909–1962. McFarland. ISBN 9781476628660 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ "Annual Report of the Executive Department of the City of Boston ..." Boston Executive Department. October 10, 1911 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ Charleton, James H. (October 10, 1986). "Recreation in the United States: National Historic Landmark Theme Study". National Park Service, Department of the Interior – via Google Books.
  10. ^ https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NHLS/87000761_text [bare URL PDF]
  11. ^ https://www.bostonirish.com/WEB-BIR-07-09.pdf [bare URL PDF]
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