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Spirit of the Confederacy

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Coordinates: 29°45′37″N 95°22′21″W / 29.76028°N 95.37261°W / 29.76028; -95.37261
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Spirit of the Confederacy
The monument in 2013
Map
ArtistLouis Amateis
Year1908 (1908)
MediumBronze sculpture
SubjectAngel
LocationHouston, Texas, United States
Coordinates29°45′37″N 95°22′21″W / 29.76028°N 95.37261°W / 29.76028; -95.37261

Spirit of the Confederacy, also known as the Confederacy Monument, is an outdoor bronze sculpture depicting an angel holding a sword and palm branch by Louis Amateis, installed in Houston's Sam Houston Park, in the U.S. state of Texas. It was erected in 1908 by a local chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The statue was removed from the park in 2020 and relocated to the Houston Museum of African American Culture.

History

Unveiling in City Park, 1908

The memorial was installed by the Robert E. Lee Chapter #186 of the United Daughters of the Confederacy[1] and unveiled on his birthday in January 1908. It had taken the Daughters nine years to collect the necessary $7,500.[2] The statue sits atop a granite pedestal. The memorial is dedicated "To all heroes of the South who fought for the Principles of States Rights".[1]

Illustration of the monument

The monument was put up at a time when Houston was a re-segregated city; the city had enacted separate streetcar compartments for whites and blacks in 1903, and "the following year, thousands of black voters were removed from the electorate when the city adopted a $2.50 poll tax". At the unveiling, Joseph Chappell Hutcheson, a Confederate veteran and Democratic representative in the Texas House of Representatives and the United States House of Representatives, said, "Look upon this masterpiece wrought in bronze, this marvel of art to typify the spirit and genius of that Confederacy we once so fondly loved and still so fondly cherish".[3] A 1911 history of the city said it has "done much to preserve the memory of the Confederate soldiers who have passed over the river and to care for and comfort those who are still on this side".[4]

Removal and relocation

Doubts about the monument were expressed in 2015 after the racially motivated Charleston church shooting, with one citizen asking, "Is it something that we want to take pride in anymore when so many people are offended by it?"[5] Protesters said the statue celebrated slavery and racism, while others argued that removing the monument meant removing history.[6] The controversy was reignited in 2017 after the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville.[3] The monument is one of two monuments in Houston dedicated to the Confederacy; the other is the statue of Richard W. Dowling.[2]

On June 11, 2020, the City of Houston announced plans to relocate the monument as well as the Dowling statue.[7] While the plans to relocate the statues had been formulating for some time, the events surrounding the death of former Houston resident George Floyd prompted the mayor and task force to move forward. The monument was removed on June 16, 2020,[8] and arrived at the Houston Museum of African American Culture on August 18.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Spirit of the Confederacy". City of Houston. Archived from the original on August 18, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
  2. ^ a b McMichael, Kelly (2013). Sacred Memories: The Civil War Monument Movement in Texas. Texas A&M University Press. pp. 89–90. ISBN 9780876112991.
  3. ^ a b Gonzalez, J. R. (August 18, 2017). "Houston Confederate statue once symbolized city's attitude toward Southern cause". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on August 19, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
  4. ^ Carroll, Benajah Harvey (1911). Standard History of Houston Texas. p. 208.
  5. ^ Martin, Florian (June 29, 2015). "So What About All Those Confederate Symbols In Houston?". Houston Public Media. Archived from the original on August 20, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
  6. ^ Harden, John D.; Elliott, Rebecca (August 15, 2017). "Tensions put spotlight on Confederate monument in Houston park". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on August 25, 2017. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
  7. ^ "Press Releases". www.houstontx.gov. Archived from the original on 2021-06-25. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  8. ^ Gowdy, ShaCamree (17 June 2020). "The Spirit of Confederacy statue has officially been removed from Sam Houston Park". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
  9. ^ "Spirit of Confederacy statue relocated to Houston Museum of African American Culture". KTRK-TV. 19 August 2020. Archived from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
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