Weird Island

13: INDEPENDENT MAN: Who is that guy on the State House?

Episode Summary

Who is that man on top of the state house dome? It might not be who you think… To Visit: Rhode Island State House | 82 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02903

Episode Notes

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Episode Transcription

Hi! I’m Sara, and you’re listening to Weird Island. Each week I’ll be telling you about the strangest stories I can dig up, from my tiny little state of Rhode Island. And this week, I was planning on bringing you a mini episode, because my work week just got away from me and also because sometimes there are going to be topics that just don’t seem to justify a whole episode, but they’re still interesting enough to cover. But, it turns out there was more to say than I expected, so instead of a mini episode, it turned into just a slightly shorter than average episode. So, anyway, this week, I’ll be answering the question: “Who is that guy on top of the state house dome?”
If you’re looking at the state house from a distance and trying to figure out who is depicted in the statue that’s up on top of the dome, then you’re really probably approaching the answer rationally by thinking, “Who would you expect to be memorialized in a statue on the state house?” Because you can’t really see much from a distance. You’re probably thinking it’s Roger Williams, right? That kind of… makes sense. I think that’s what most people assume. And if not Roger Williams, then some other famous political leader.
But on closer inspection, here’s what you’d see:
A young man, standing at 11 feet tall and weighing in at over 500 lbs. He’s holding a spear in one hand, and leans on an anchor with the other and he wears nothing but a lion skin loincloth. Quahog.com describes him as “a somewhat doughy looking fellow,” but he’s described as muscular in other places, so I guess that’s up to your interpretation and standards. He’s made of bronze, but is covered entirely in glimmering gold-leaf. While no one knows exactly what Roger Williams actually looked like, nothing about this shouts “Roger Williams.” So, who is it?
Well, it’s actually no one, or maybe everyone? This statue is known as “The Independent Man,” and he’s not one single person but is a representation of the independent spirit of Rhode Island and the original founders.
Here’s the thing, though. You’re not exactly wrong for thinking it’s Roger Williams, because at one point that’s who it was supposed to be. At the annual meeting of the Rhode Island Historical Society in 1895, two directions for the statue were discussed. First, there was a proposal from McKim, Mead and White (the architecture firm who designed the state house). They imagined a female figure, classically styled in a Grecian dress or toga, standing with an anchor at her back. Her name was to be “Hope,” as a representation of the state’s one-word motto. But the State House Commission wanted it to be Roger Williams, instead. And thus began the heated debate over the state house statue.
Many sites state that the main point of contention was that no one actually knows what Roger Williams looks like, so how could they construct a statue of him? But that hasn’t stopped others from trying. And it’s thought that perhaps the architecture firm rejected the proposal because it wouldn’t have been in keeping with the neoclassical design of the state house to have a man in colonial attire standing on the dome. In other words, pantaloons were just not going to look good up there!
At the end of the day, they decided to go with the Roger Williams approach, but it wouldn’t be Williams, just an embodiment of the spirit of Williams - with a neoclassical look and feel. I wasn’t able to find the source article, but Rhode Island Monthly says that a reporter wrote in an 1899 issue of the Providence Journal, “Just think of Roger without any clothes on, waving a spear and anchor!” And I just wanted to pause here to say, if you have no idea who Williams is, then check out my other episode on Roger Williams for a whole history that will add a ton of context to this episode!
So, really, he’s like the store brand version of Roger Williams--the generic cola version--like they couldn’t get the license to use his name because the likeness wasn’t good enough, so they were like, “We’ll call him Independent Man--everyone will know who we’re actually talking about.” Wink Wink.
So, Independent Man, as we know him now, was designed by sculptor George T. Brewster and placed up on the dome on December 18, 1899.
But that’s not the end, or really even the beginning of his story. Because the Independent Man has been through some stuff. According to legend, the bronze used to create the Independent Man had a life before him. It’s not mentioned on the State House site but a handful of other sites and articles, including a 1976 article in the Newport Mercury, a 1994 article in the Bristol Sun Sentinel, and a 2014 Providence Journal article state that the bronze used came from a statue of Simon Bolivar that was once displayed in New York’s Central Park.
And that’s kind of an interesting story--so the statue of Bolivar was designed by Rafael de la Cova, and it was a gift from the Venezuelan government to the United States. But it was a gift that went wrong. The statue, which depicted Bolivar on a horse, was completed and cast on June 18, 1883 but it wasn’t installed in New York’s Central park until one year later.
When it was installed, it was welcomed with fanfare. A June 18, 1884 New York Times article describes the day, saying, “Upward of 2,000 people witnessed the unveiling of the statue of General Simon Bolivar, in Central Park, yesterday afternoon, and most of them were obliged to stand patiently beneath the pelting rays of the sun while the ceremonies were in progress.” As the people gathered and waited expectantly, the statue was hidden underneath a draped Venezuelan flag. Finally, it was time for the big reveal. The President of the Park Board spoke, calling the statue, “not merely a work of art,” but a “tribute of esteem from a young republic of South America to her sister in the North.” Then the Minister of Venezuela stepped to the front and addressed the crowd. “Venezuela and her Government and people trust that this bronze, representing their immortal leader in her victorious struggle for liberty and independence, shall forever be preserved here and honored by this worthy city.” As the speech ended, a band played a medley of Venezuelan national airs, a salute of 21 guns thundered from the war ships in the Hudson, and as the flags dropped from the statue the crowd exclaimed: “Awww, he’s ugly!”
Okay, so that is absolutely not what they said. But, it’s definitely how people felt. In reality, as the flags dropped off, the crowd cheered. But after the ceremony had ended, and the dust had settled, it became clear that the statue wasn’t exactly attractive. The piece was hailed not as a masterpiece, but as a “monster piece.” And the New York Times would later write, “Almost from the moment of its erection it became the object of ridicule.”
Eventually, the president of Venezuela had to agree, and a replacement statue was commissioned in 1896. Statue number 2 was completed in 1898, but it wasn’t quite right either. The NY Times wrote, “It still falls short of the high standard to which it is now properly felt any future statues or monuments in our public parks should conform.” But while they never actually put up statue number 2, they did take the first statue down around that time. And the pedestal on which it stood was unoccupied until 1921, when the Venezuelan Government held an open competition to select the artist who would create statue number 3. And statue 3 was a winner! It’s still there in Central Park today. But, where did Statue number 1 go?
Well, many of the articles on the Bolivar statues suggested it was hidden away somewhere by New York’s Municipal Art Commission for many years. Alternatively, the wikipedia page of the artist, Rafael de la Cova, states that it was “dismantled because it was very deteriorated.” No mention of it being ugly, of course. But, there are also rumors that it was donated to the Gorham Foundry, who melted the statue and used the bronze metal to cast The Independent Man.
So perhaps the raw materials went through quite the journey to get there, on top of the state house. And once they were all together in their final form, they continued to face some interesting adventures.
In 1927, the Independent Man was struck with lightning, and the damage was so serious he had to be repaired with copper staples. They did the job for a while, until 1951, when repairs had to be completed again. He wasn’t removed to undergo surgery - he stayed up there on the state house roof for 76 years. But in 1975, it was decided that the Independent Man would make his way to the ground for more comprehensive care. He was going to be repaired and re-gilt for the Bicentennial celebration, and it would be expensive, requiring a $25K grant from the RI Bicentennial of Independence Commission, but it was worth it for the PR. (And also, the volunteer chairman of the Commission finagled a job for a friend out of the deal). So the Commission provided the grant, and the Independent Man was delivered to the Paul King Foundry in Johnston for surgery. And during repairs, the foundry also did some casting of the statue’s face. Later, a reproduced bronze cast of the statue’s head was created and raffled off, and the family who won it donated to URI where it is on display today.
Once repairs were complete, the owner of the Warwick Mall suggested perhaps Rhode Islanders would like to get a good look at the statue, considering how small it usually looks up on top of the state house dome. And what better place to set him up for visits than the mall? The commission agreed, and funds for repairs were recouped by charging visitors for photos with the Independent Man. But his visit would be cut short. Other mall owners complained the state had given the Warwick Mall an unfair advantage by installing the Independent Man, and they brought a lawsuit over it. So on July 20, 1976 the Independent Man was reinstalled by helicopter in his rightful place on the state house roof, and he hasn’t been taken down since. He had his one change to galavant around, and now he’s back presiding over the city of Providence.
In the 90s, the Warwick Mall installed a replica of the statue outside the food court to harken back to the time when the real Independent Man had graced mall-goers with his presence. I wonder if most people know who or what the statue is? Because, truthfully, I never really took a good look at what the statue looked like until now. To me it just looked like a smudge of gold up on the state house roof, and you could have told me it was anything, really.
But I did find out, somewhere along the line, probably from my dad, that it was called the Independent Man, and to be completely honest, I was disappointed by that name. Disappointed to find out it wasn’t someone specific, someone with a story. That’s why I was a little surprised to find that I actually enjoyed learning a little about the statue and it’s adventures and the thoughts that went into its styling and subject matter. And I’m sure it’s seen a lot from up there that I could never read about.
What does the statue represent? According to the state house site, it is a symbol of “the independent spirit and initiative which led Roger Williams to settle in Rhode Island in his search for freedom of worship. The Independent Man stands watch over our State Capitol and reminds Rhode Islanders that it is important to stand up for your beliefs. It represents men and women, young and old, times past and present.”
It’s a little general, but it’s also kind of a cool notion that the root of the state’s identity is all about valuing your ideas, your beliefs, your unique and diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and opinions, no matter who you are or where you’re from. And where’s the Independent Man from? Well, he’s got a little bit of Greek heritage, from the aesthetic considerations that were made towards his styling, a little bit of English heritage from Roger Williams, and some Latino heritage, from the Bolivar statue. So maybe he represents independence, but the kind of independence and power and unique perspective we can have as a state when we all bring our voices together.
Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, share it with family and friends! Or leave a rating or review wherever you get your podcasts. If you have a topic you’d like to hear about, you can email me at Weird Rhode Island at Gmail.com. See you next week as we dig up more stories about all things weird and wonderful in the little state of Rhode Island. Until next time!