George Rogers Clark statue

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The George Rogers Clark statue is located on University Avenue in the Corner district on the grounds of University of Virginia in Charlottesville. It was funded by Paul Goodloe McIntire and sculpted by Robert Ingersoll Aitken. It was unveiled on January 6, 1922. [1] It honors Brigadier General George Rogers Clark (1752 – 1818), for whom Clark Elementary School is also named.

Clark was born in Albemarle County, near Charlottesville, in 1752, but moved to with his family to Caroline County in 1756. He served as an officer in the Virginia Militia during the Revolutionary War and the Northwest Indian War (Little Turtle's War), earning him the nickname "Conqueror of the Old Northwest". In both of these conflicts, he primarily fought against Native American tribes allied with or led by the British. He and his family enslaved numerous individuals on their plantations.

The statue was listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register on June 19, 1996 and the National Register of Historic Places on May 16, 1997. [2]

Narrative from Virginia Landmarks Registry

"The monument to Albemarle County native George Rogers Clark, “Conqueror of the Northwest,” is the fourth of four works of public sculpture commissioned from members of the National Sculpture Society by Charlottesville philanthropist Paul Goodloe McIntire. McIntire engaged Robert Ingersoll Aitken to create a heroic-size bronze group that portrays a mounted Clark with members of his expedition confronting an Indian chief and members of his party. The sculpture was cast by the Gorham Company and was erected in 1921. A masterful and complex work of art, the monument reflects the influence of the City Beautiful Movement. McIntire departed here from his usual practice of donating monuments to the city and presented the Clark sculpture to the University of Virginia."

References

  1. Web. This Day in Charlottesville History, City of Charlottesville, retrieved April 18, 2012.
  2. Web. 104-0252 George Rogers Clark Monument, Virginia Landmarks Register, November 7, 2018, retrieved January 18, 2020.

External links