Abraham Lincoln, (sculpture).

Abraham Lincoln, (sculpture).

Pelzer, Alfonso, d. 1904, sculptor.

W. H. Mullins Company, founder.

Abraham Lincoln, (sculpture).

Old Abe, (sculpture).

Copyrighted 1898. Cast ca. 1915. Dedicated Feb. 3, 1919. Relocated 1958. Rededicated May 14, 1986.

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: bronze; Base: granite.

Sculpture: approx. 7 ft. x 26 in. x 22 in.; Base: approx. 5 x 6 x 6 ft.

(Plaque on bronze base, raised lettering:) MANUFACTURED BY/THE W.H. MULLINS CO/SALEM, OHIO, U.S.A. (On front of base, incised lettering:) LET MAN BE FREE unsigned Founder's mark appears.

A standing portrait of Abraham Lincoln appearing as if he is giving a speech. He holds the Emancipation Proclamation scrolled in his proper left hand. He wears a bow tie, a vest, and greatcoat. The sculpture is mounted upon a tapered base.

Portrait male -- Lincoln, Abraham -- Full length

Occupation -- Political -- President

Occupation -- Law -- Lawyer

Outdoor Sculpture -- Michigan -- Detroit

Administered by City of Detroit, Parks and Recreation Department, Landscape Division, 2008 Water Board Building, 735 Randolph Street, Detroit, Michigan 48226

Located Detroit Public Library, 5201 Woodward Avenue, Library Park, Detroit, Michigan 48202

Formerly located Lincoln Motor Company, West Warren & Livernois, Detroit, Michigan 1919-1958.

Formerly in the collection of Leland, Henry, 1915.

This sculpture is one of six copies made. In 1915, William H. Mullins, whose foundry was located in Salem, Ohio, reproduced the Lincoln statues from the Pelzer molds and bestowed two of the statues in the Detroit area. Henry B. Joy, president of the Packard Motor Company, received the Lincoln that now resides at Charles Howell Boy Scout Reservation in Brighton, Michigan, and Henry M. Leland, president of the Lincoln Motor Company, received this one now owned by the City of Detroit. It was originally unveiled in front of the Lincoln Motor plant in Detroit on Feb. 3, 1919. For many years, it was the focal point for wreath-laying ceremonies by the Boys Scouts and city dignitaries. After the plant closed, Wilfred Leland, son of Henry, offered it to the City of Detroit, and it was relocated to its present site in 1958. In 1969, vandals pulled the sculpture down, snapping it off at the feet. It was repaired and placed back atop its base. In 1985, a drive was launched by Neal Shine, managing editor of the Detroit Free Press, to restore "Old Abe." School children raised the major portion of the money needed for restoration, and it was rededicated on May 14, 1986.

For related information see Dennis Nawrocki's "Art in Detroit Public Places," Detroit, MI: Wayne State Press, 1980 and American Libraries, Nov. 1997, pg. 23. IAS files contain an excerpt from Weldon Petz's "Michigan's Monumental Tributes to Abraham Lincoln," Ann Arbor, MI: Historical Society of Michigan, pg. 11-12 (The Clarence M. Burton Memorial Lecture, 1986). IAS files also contain article from American Libraries, Sept. 1998, pg. 25, discussing receipt of Save Outdoor Sculpture Treatment Award.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Michigan survey, 1993.

Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985

Detroit Public Library, 1976.

SOS Conservation Treatment Award, 1998.

Detroit Historical Museum, City of Detroit Monuments, 2004.

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

Control Number:

Horizon Information Portal 3.25_9382

Powered by SirsiDynix

About | © 2020 Smithsonian | Terms of Use | Privacy | Contact

SIRIS - Smithsonian Institution Research Information System