Skip to main content

U.S. Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts, Immortalized in Boston by Sculptors Martin Milmore and Thomas Ball


Bust of MA Senator Charles Sumner by Martin Milmore
Massachusetts State House

Charles Sumner, the U.S. Senator from Massachusetts from 1851 to 1874, was famous as a leading advocate for abolishing slavery during his distinguished career.   

Sumner was one of the first subjects for the rising young sculptor, Martin Milmore, who was born in County Sligo, Ireland in 1844 and emigrated to Boston with his widowed mother in 1851. Milmore's artistic genius was recognized early on as a student at the Martin Brimmer School and later at Boston Latin School. 

According to the US Capital Historical Society, "Sumner sat (for) Milmore in 1863, after which the two became friends and maintained a lengthy correspondence, living, as they were mostly, in different cities."

The original bust was presented to the Massachusetts State House on April 27, 1869 by A.A. Lawrence, according to the book, Massachusetts State House by Ellen Mudge Burrill, published in 1905.

"The tribute was probably commissioned by friends of the senator and presented to the State House in recognition of his long and distinguished representation of the Commonwealth," writes State House Art Curator Susan Greendyke in her 2012 book, Art of the Civil War at the State House.

The bust was the first interation of several pieces Milmore did on the famous senator. This one employs classical clothing and style, which Milmore and other sculptors favored during this time. 

Writes historian Thomas Brown, "The Roman toga, a manner out of favor by 1875, is also preserved from the early bust. Milmore not only captured the appearance of the famous orator and advocate with his careful naturalism but also created an aura of greatness of the man."

In November, 1869, Milmore was awarded a gold medal for the Sumner bust at an exhibition by the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanics’ Association.”

The original bust remains in the State House Senate Chamber.  In 1878, a replica was given by the state of Massachusetts to George William Curtis in recognition of his eulogy on the senator in 1874.

"After Curtis’s death, his widow Anna Shaw Curtis offered the bust to the US Senate, where it was immediately accepted. Among the many busts of Charles Sumner executed in his lifetime, Martin Milmore’s has been generally considered the most out- standing," writes the US Capital Historical Society.


Courtesy of U.S.Capital Historical Society 

Senator Sumner is also an unfortunate footnote in an unsavory episode in the U.S.Senate Chamber in Washington, DC on May 22, 1856, when Representative Preston Brooks of South Carolina came into the Chamber unannounced and savagely beat Sumner into unconsciousness, due to their differences on the slavery issue.


Photo Courtesy, Wikipedia

Sumner had an interest in the "Irish Question," according to the U.S.Capital Historical Society, and befriended many of the political figures on both sides of the Atlantic.  "When Frederick Douglass visited Ireland in 1845, he carried with him a letter of introduction from Sumner to nationalist politician Daniel O'Connell."

A full-length statue of Charles Sumner, designed by sculptor Thomas Ball, was unveiled on December 23, 1878 in the Boston Public Garden along Boylston Street Mall. As a young boy, Milmore apprenticed to Ball, famous for the George Washington Statue in the Boston Public Garden and the Daniel Webster statue in Central Park, New York.  



Find more information on Irish-relevant artwork at the Massachusetts State House.  For more about Irish history and culture in Boston, visit IrishHeritageTrail.com.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Boston Celtics : The Story Behind Their Irish Green Theme

Many people wonder why the  Boston Celtics  wear shamrocks on their green uniforms and have a giant leprechaun smoking a cigar as their team logo. And why the team mascot is a guy named Lucky who looks like he stepped out of a box of Lucky Charms? According to the Boston Celtic’s official web site, the name came about in 1946 when owner Walter Brown started the team. He and his public relations guy, Howie McHugh, were throwing out potential nicknames, including the Whirlwinds, Unicorns and Olympics. It was Brown who had the epiphany, saying, “Wait, I’ve got it – the Celtics. The name has a great basketball tradition from the old Original Celtics in New York (1920s). And Boston is full of Irishman. We’ll put them in green uniforms and call them the Boston Celtics.” Red Auerbach , the now legendary coach of the early Celtics, then commissioned his brother Zang, a graphic designer in the newspaper business, to come up with the famous Celtics logo in the early 1950s. The logo mana
Post a Comment
Read more

Boston Mayors of Irish Descent, 1885-2021

(Originally published in 2013, this post was updated in 2021) Here are the Mayors of Boston Claiming Irish Heritage:  Hugh O’Brien 1885–88 Patrick Collins 1902–05 John F. Fitzgerald 1906–07, 1910–13 James M. Curley 1914–17, 1922–25, 1930–33, 1946–49 Frederick W. Mansfield 1934–37 Maurice Tobin 1938–41, 1941-44 John Kerrigan 1945 John B. Hynes 1950–59 John Collins 1960–68 Kevin H. White 1968–83 Raymond L. Flynn 1984–93 Martin J. Walsh   2014- 2021 The lineage of Boston mayors with Irish ancestry dates back to 1885, when Irish immigrant Hugh O'Brien of County Cork assumed office and became the first Irish-born mayor elected in Boston, serving four one-year terms (1885-88).   O'Brien was followed by Irish-born Patrick Collins (1902-05), also of County Cork, who died in office in 1905. He was replaced by John F. Fitzgerald, who became the first American-born mayor of Irish descent, serving two terms.  A noteworthy mayor was James
Post a Comment
Read more

Boston's Airport Named for Edward L. Logan, South Boston Leader with Galway Roots

Statue of General Edward L. Logan Boston ’s Logan InternationalAirport was named for General Edward L. Logan (1875-1939), a first generation Irish-American, military leader, civic leader and municipal judge with family roots in Galway and South Boston .  Logan was the son of Lawrence Logan and Catherine O'Connor from Ballygar, County Galway, according to historian Michael J. Cummings .  The Logan family lived on East Broadway in South Boston.   Read a full profile of Edward L. Logan on IrishMassachusetts.com . The Logan statue is part of Boston's Irish Heritage Trail , a collection of public landmarks, memorials, buildings and statues that tell the story of the Boston Irish from the 1700s to the present.  Find year round information on Boston's Irish community at IrishBoston.org . 
Post a Comment
Read more