Statue of Thomas Cass

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]

Colonel Thomas Cass
The statue in 2017
ArtistRichard E. Brooks
Year1899 (1899)
SubjectThomas Cass
LocationBoston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Coordinates42.352602°N 71.068800°W / 42.352602; -71.068800

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. "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. https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/boston-public-garden-study-report.pdf
  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
  11. https://www.bostonirish.com/WEB-BIR-07-09.pdf
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