Английская Википедия:Henry Clay Monument

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Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Use American English Шаблон:Use mdy dates

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The Henry Clay Monument is a public monument in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, United States. Work on the monument, which consists of a state of Henry Clay atop a Doric column, began in 1852, shortly after his death, and ended in 1855.

As a politician in the early 19th century, Clay was an advocate for the American System of protective tariffs that helped Pottsville's anthracite industry, and upon his death in 1852, several prominent citizens in the city advocated for the erection of a monument in his honor. Work commenced with the laying of a cornerstone on July 26, 1852, and ended in June 1855, with the structure dedicated on July 4 (Independence Day) of that year. The column was designed by Frank Hewson and created by George Fissler, while the statue was designed by sculptor H. Wesche and cast at the Robert Wood & Company foundry in Philadelphia. Both these structures are made of cast iron and painted white.

Design

The monument consists of a column of the Doric order topped by a statue of Henry Clay,Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn similar in overall design to the Robert E. Lee Monument in New Orleans and Nelson's Column in London.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Both the column and the statue are made of cast iron,Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn and the entire structure is painted white.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The column rests on a stone base,Шаблон:Sfn with materials quarried from nearby mountains.Шаблон:Sfn The statue, which weighs about Шаблон:Convert,Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn depicts a standing Clay whose appearance is based on the painting Senate of 1850 by Peter F. Rothermel.Шаблон:Sfn Clay faces northwards, looking over the city.Шаблон:Sfn The column is made up of eight segments, each Шаблон:Convert tall that are secured together by interior flanges.Шаблон:Sfn The entire weight of both the column and the statue is roughly Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:Sfn

The monument's base has a height of Шаблон:Convert and an area of Шаблон:Convert by Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:Sfn The column is Шаблон:Convert tall, with a base covering an area of Шаблон:Convert by Шаблон:Convert, while the statue is roughly Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Refn The monument is located on South Centre Street, near Washington Street,Шаблон:Sfn on a ridge overlooking the city,Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn just beneath Cloud Home.Шаблон:Sfn The base of the monument is situated about Шаблон:Convert above the nearest sidewalk.Шаблон:Sfn

The base of the monument has three inscriptions on its east, north, and south faces, which are as follows:Шаблон:Sfn

Шаблон:BlockquoteШаблон:BlockquoteШаблон:Blockquote

History

Background

Henry Clay was a Virginia-born politician who was active during the first half of the 19th century.Шаблон:Sfn As a member of the United States Congress, Clay was a proponent of the American System, an economic plan that relied on high tariffs in order to foster the growth of American industry.Шаблон:Sfn This especially applied to iron products produced in the United Kingdom,Шаблон:Sfn which helped spur the development of the domestic iron industry.Шаблон:Sfn Because coal is used in the production of iron products,Шаблон:Sfn the tariffs and Clay's advocacy for it was well received in Pennsylvania, as it benefitted the state's anthracite coal industry.Шаблон:Sfn This was especially true in the city of Pottsville, which was located in Pennsylvania's Coal Region and was a center of anthracite-mining.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Clay died on July 29, 1852,Шаблон:Sfn and in Pennsylvania, he was memorialized as the namesake of a coal mine near Shamokin, and with the naming of the borough of Ashland, which is the name of Clay's estate in Kentucky.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn

Plans for a monument

Шаблон:Quote box Due to his economic policies that helped the anthracite industry, Clay was beloved in Pottsville, and within a month of his death, local residents were planning to construct a monument in his honor.Шаблон:Sfn The Henry Clay Monument Association was established,Шаблон:Sfn made up of several notable residents of Pottsville, including Frank Hewson, a civil engineer who worked on the Mount Carbon Railroad; Samuel Sillyman,Шаблон:Refn a coal mine operator and treasurer of Pottsville who was active in the Whig Party; and Edward Yardley, a businessman who operated a hardware business and served as president of a local natural gas company.Шаблон:Sfn One of the first plans this committee developed was to hold a funeral procession for Clay in Pottsville.Шаблон:Sfn On July 26,Шаблон:Refn 1,600 people attended this ceremony.Шаблон:Sfn During these obsequies, a cornerstone for a monument to Clay was laid on land that had been donated by John Bannan,Шаблон:Refn a local Whig activist and publisher of the Miner's Journal.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The location for the monument was situated on a ridge below Bannan's Cloud Home estate.Шаблон:Sfn

Builders

Файл:Carving Room for the Statue of Henry Clay.jpg
The statue under construction, 1853

Following the placement of this cornerstone, work on the monument progressed slowly.Шаблон:Sfn On August 16, the monument association established a building committee to oversee the construction of the memorial.Шаблон:Sfn Hewson served as the project's architect and designed the overall design for the column.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn This column was created by George B. Fissler.Шаблон:Sfn Meanwhile, the statue of Clay was designed by H. Wesche, a Philadelphia-based sculptor,Шаблон:Sfn and was cast at the foundry of Robert Wood & Company, also based in Philadelphia.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The statue would be the first monumental cast iron sculpture created in the United States.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn In total, about 150 wooden patterns were used in the sand casting process.Шаблон:Sfn Jacob Madara,Шаблон:Refn a local stonemason, oversaw the structure's stonework construction.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn

Funding and completion

By November 27, construction of the base for the monument was completed, but work on the rest of the project stalled until 1854 due primarily to a lack of sufficient funding.Шаблон:Sfn In total, the monument cost $7,151 (equivalent to $Шаблон:Inflation in 2021),Шаблон:Sfn with a total project cost of $7,342.58 ($Шаблон:Inflation in 2021).Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Refn Of this amount, Sillyman provided approximately $3,000 ($Шаблон:Inflation in 2021),Шаблон:Sfn the most of any single funder of the project.Шаблон:Sfn The statue itself cost the monument association $2,090 ($Шаблон:Inflation in 2021).Шаблон:Sfn On September 26, 1854, the first section of the column was received at Port Carbon and hauled to Pottsville, with more parts coming in the following months.Шаблон:Sfn

On June 9, 1855, the monument association held a meeting to discuss further fundraising efforts and to plan a dedication ceremony for the monument, which they expected to hold that Independence Day, July 4.Шаблон:Sfn Around this time, the association still needed to raise $2,433 ($Шаблон:Inflation in 2021) to complete the project.Шаблон:Sfn By June 14, work on the column was fully completed,Шаблон:Sfn and on June 23, it was hauled up the hill and to the base of the monument by a team of 12 mules.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Several days later, on June 26,Шаблон:Refn the statue of Clay was lifted atop the now-erect column by Walter Chillson.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Refn An Шаблон:Convert derrick was used in placing this statue.Шаблон:Sfn The placement of the statue was met with cheers and a cannon blast from a crowd of sightseers that had gathered around the site.Шаблон:Sfn Initially, the statue faced east, but one day after it was raised, it was rotated to face north, as the monument association believed that this position, which would allow Clay to overlook the city of Pottsville, was more appealing.Шаблон:Sfn With the monument's completion, it became the first monument to Henry Clay erected in the United States.Шаблон:Sfn

The monument was dedicated on July 4, 1855.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Refn The dedication included a large procession that featured members of the local Independent Order of Odd Fellows lodge, veterans from the Mexican–American War, and members of various civic organizations.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The ceremony at the monument following the procession was overseen by Bannan and included speeches from several noted local citizens, a prayer held by a local priest, and the reading of the United States Declaration of Independence.Шаблон:Sfn

Later history

Файл:Henry Clay Monument, 1924.png
The monument, Шаблон:Circa

By the mid-20th century, the monument had been more-or-less neglected and fallen into a state of neglect, prompting the creation of a new monument committee in 1953 to oversee preservation efforts.Шаблон:Sfn Despite beliefs by the original constructors of the monument that theirs would be the first in a series of Clay monuments erected across the country, by 1985, the only other monument to the politician was at his gravesite in Lexington, Kentucky.Шаблон:Sfn This is due in part to the fact that while Clay was well known during his lifetime, he had become a generally forgotten figure to the general public over the next century.Шаблон:Sfn During the later half of the century, the area surrounding the monument was cleaned and the structure itself was refurbished.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn In the 1980s, the statue was removed from the column for cleaning, and it was returned on August 26, 1985, and rededicated on October 19 of that year.Шаблон:Sfn In 1994, the monument was surveyed as part of the Save Outdoor Sculpture! project.Шаблон:Sfn By 2022, instances of vandalism to the monument prompted the installation of lights to illuminate the structure.Шаблон:Sfn Around this same time, the monument faced possible structural issues due to erosion at the site, as well as the structure being partially obscured by surrounding trees, though Pottsville Mayor Dave Clews stated that preservation work on the monument was not a high priority to the city.Шаблон:Sfn

See also

Notes

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References

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Sources

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Further reading

External links

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