Alexander Robey Shepherd, (sculpture).

Alexander Robey Shepherd, (sculpture).

Dunbar, Ulric Stonewall Jackson, 1862-1927, sculptor.

Bureau Brothers, founder.

Smith Granite Company, fabricator.

Van Amringe Granite Company, contractor.

Kyle Granite Company, contractor

Alexander Robey Shepherd, (sculpture).

Boss Shepherd, (sculpture).

1905. Dedicated May 3, 1909. Reinstalled 2005.

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: bronze: Base: light Westerly granite.

Sculpture: approx. H. 8 ft.; Base: approx. H. 7 ft. 6 in. W. 9 ft. 3 in.

(Base, right edge, just below proper right foot:) U. S. J. DUNBAR, Sc. WASH. D.C. / Bureau Bro's. Phila. Pa. (Front of base:) SHEPHERD signed Founder's mark appears.

Standing portrait of Shepherd dressed in a suit consisting of a long coat, high-collared shirt, and wide tie. In his proper right hand he holds a scrolled map of the city of Washington down at his side. His proper left arm is bent and rests at the small of his back. His hair is close cropped and he stares straight ahead. The sculpture rests on a two-tiered stone base.

Portrait male -- Shepherd, Alexander R. -- Full length

Occupation -- Political

Object -- Written Matter -- Map

Outdoor Sculpture -- District of Columbia -- Washington

Administered by District of Columbia, Department of Public Works, Design Engineering and Construction Administration, 2000 14th Street, N.W., Washington, District of Columbia 20009

Located John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, District of Columbia 20004

Formerly located 4901 Shepherd Parkway, S. W., Washington, District of Columbia

Formerly located 4701 Shepherd Parkway, S.W., Washington, District of Columbia

Formerly located Municipal Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N. W., Entrance, Washington, District of Columbia 1909-1931.

Formerly located 14th Street & Pennsylvania Avenue. N.W., Washington, District of Columbia 1931-1979.

Formerly located Blue Plains Sewage Treatment Plant, 5000 Overlook Avenue, S. W., Washington, District of Columbia 1979.

Alexander Robey Shepherd (1835-1902), later known as Boss Shepherd, was born and educated in Washington, D.C. where he became one of the city's biggest land developers. Shepherd first headed the Citizens Reform Association which demanded a governor for the city. President Grant and Congress agreed, but opposition to Shepherd prevented him from being named governor and Grant instead appointed him to a seat on the Board of Public Works in 1871. At Public Works, Shepherd made many improvements to the city, some of them controversial, and many with the help of his business associates. In 1872, citizens asked Congress to investigate the Board of Public Works, but Shepherd was not charged with any wrong doing. In 1873 Grant appointed him governor, but by this time it was discovered that the Board of Public Works had over spent, and he himself was in financial straights, and he soon fell out of favor with the citizens. In 1880 he moved to Mexico where he was to regained his fortune.

Smith Granite Company built the base. The sculpture was originally installed at the entrance to the District of Columbia Building. It remained there until 1931 when, due to construction of the Federal Triangle, it was moved to the plaza across the street from the District Building at 14th and Pennsylvania Avenue. In 1979, the sculpture again had to be moved due to construction. It was boxed up and placed in storage for three years, possibly at the Blue Plains Sewage Treatment Plant, and in 2005 was installed outside the District Building, renamed the John A. Wilson Building in 1994. IAS files contain related articles from The Washington Post, Aug. 4, 1904, pg. 12; Jan. 5, 1908, Aug. 13, 1990 and Jan. 22, 2005, pg. A-16 (Letters to the Editor); and the Washington Post Magazine, April 28, 1991, pg. 27-45.

Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985

National Park Service, American Monuments and Outdoor Sculpture Database, DC5031, 1989.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, pg. 367-368.

Monumental News, Jan. and Sept. 1905; March and Sept. 1908; Jan. 1910.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, District of Columbia survey, 1993.

Michael Richman, SAAM curatorial assistant, 1967-1969.

Harmon, Craig, 2013.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, J-8.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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