''Roger Williams'' is an 1872 marble sculpture of Roger Williams by

Franklin Simmons Franklin Bachelder Simmons (January 11, 1839 – December 8, 1913) was a prominent American sculptor of the nineteenth century. Three of his statues are in the National Statuary Hall Collection, three of his busts are in the United States Senate ...

, installed in the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

, in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, as part of the

National Statuary Hall Collection The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol is composed of statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history. Limited to two statues per state, the collection was originally set up in the old ...

. It is one of two statues donated by the state of

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

. The sculpture was unveiled by Senator William Sprague of Rhode Island on January 9, 1872. Simmons received the commission to execute the statue in 1868 and moved to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

to produce the work. After setting up his studio there and working on the statue for two years Simmons decided to remain in Italy.

Lorado Taft Lorado Zadok Taft (April 29, 1860, in Elmwood, Illinois – October 30, 1936, in Chicago) was an American sculptor, writer and educator. His 1903 book, ''The History of American Sculpture,'' was the first survey of the subject and stood for deca ...

in his ''The History of American Sculpture'' describes the statue as "a credible work, which may well have ranked for years among the best in that collection". The statue is one of three that Simmons has placed in the collection,Viles, Philip H., ''National Statuary Hall: Guidebook for a Walking Tour'', Published by Philip H. Viles, Tulsa, OK, 1997 p. 114 the others being '' William King'', from Maine and ''

Francis Harrison Pierpont Francis Harrison Pierpont (January 25, 1814March 24, 1899), called the "Father of West Virginia," was an American lawyer and politician who achieved prominence during the American Civil War. During the conflict's first two years, Pierpont served ...

'' from West Virginia.

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* 1872 establishments in Washington, D.C. 1872 sculptures Marble sculptures in Washington, D.C. Monuments and memorials in Washington, D.C. Williams, Roger Sculptures of men in Washington, D.C. Governor of Rhode Island {{US-sculpture-stub

See also

References

External links