A bronze statue of Nebraska's Julius Sterling Morton — founder of Arbor Day — will be one of the first figures greeting the public when the Capitol Visitor Center opens in December.
ASTRID MUNN / For the Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Sunday, November 9, 2008 6:00 pm
WASHINGTON — A bronze statue of Nebraska’s Julius Sterling Morton — founder of Arbor Day — will be one of the first figures greeting the public when the Capitol Visitor Center opens in December.
The sculpture was one of 24 statues moved out of the Capitol and into the new center, which is designed to bring visitors out of the elements and into a 580,000-square-foot arena where they can eat and view historical exhibits before touring the Capitol itself.
Because the Capitol’s statue collection was beginning to look cramped now that all 50 states have donated two statues each, moving Morton’s statue should be considered an upgrade rather than a demotion, said Terrie Rouse, the center chief executive officer.
“We have shifted the statues to where they can be better appreciated,” she said.
If Morton was competing for attention in the Capitol, he doesn’t have to anymore.
The statue, which shows Morton with a sapling at his feet, stands in the lobby a few steps beyond the security check. In Morton’s left hand is the “History of Nebraska,” which he began to edit in 1897.
“Here at the foundation, we’re excited that many more people will become familiar with J. Sterling Morton and his visionary perspective on conservation here in America,” said Woodrow Nelson, vice president of communications for the National Arbor Day Foundation in Nebraska City.
Morton, born in New York in 1832 and raised in Michigan, staked a claim in Nebraska before it was a territory. He farmed in Nebraska City and participated in the region’s politics before bringing tree-planting and conservation to national attention while serving as President Cleveland’s secretary of agriculture.
In 1872, Morton founded Arbor Day. It is celebrated in Nebraska on the last Friday in April, which is near his birthdate, April 22.
A sculpture of William Jennings Bryan will remain in the main statue collection. Washington-area artist Rudulph Evans made both the Bryan and Morton statues, which were placed in the Capitol in 1937.
Former Journal Star intern Astrid Munn is working in Washington this semester as a Scripps Howard Foundation Wire reporter. Reach her at (202) 326-9866 or shws1@shns.com.