(Boy Scout Fountain), (sculpture).

(Boy Scout Fountain), (sculpture).

Borst, George H., 1889-1969, sculptor.

Gorham Manufacturing Company, founder.

(Boy Scout Fountain), (sculpture).

Boy Scout Memorial, (sculpture).

1933. Dedicated June 18, 1933.

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: bronze; Base: granite.

Sculpture: approx. 37 1/2 x 18 x 37 in.; Base: approx. 53 x 54 x 82 in., including 18 in. trough.

(On sole of proper right shoe:) George H. Borst (On heel of proper left shoe:) The Gorham Co. Founders (Plaque on front of base:) DANIEL WEBSTER BURROWS/TO HIS BOYHOOD HOME signed Founder's mark appears.

A boy scout, dressed in scout uniform, kneels on a granite boulder. Water flows from his arms down the front of boulder and into a drinking trough for animals.

Figure male -- Full length

Occupation -- Service -- Scouting

Outdoor Sculpture -- New Hampshire -- Plymouth

Administered by Town of Plymouth, Office of Selectman, 6 Post Office Square, Plymouth, New Hampshire 03264

Located Plymouth Town Common, Main Street, Rte. 3, Plymouth, New Hampshire

The idea for the fountain originated with George C. Clark and an inheritance bequeathed to him by his cousin Daniel W. Burrows. The concept for a scout performing an act of kindness to animals was suggested by Morton Wheeler, a local Boy Scout, who along with Harold Webster modelled for the sculpture. Mrs. Charlotte Webster worked out the idea for the sculpture. Mr. Clark commissioned his friend, George H. Borst to create the sculpture. It was cast by Gorham Company. The statue is reportedly the first bronze statue of a Boy Scout to be erected in the country. The sculpture is covered during winter months.

IAS files contain related newsclippings from Manchester Union Leader, June 19, 1933 and Aug. 13, 1997, pg. A-1, A-14; and from Laconia Evening Citizen (Laconia, NH), May 24, 1980 and April 30, 1994. IAS files also contain copy of dedication program; and excerpt from David Ruell's unpublished manuscript "The Public Sculpture of New Hampshire," Concord: New Hampshire, 1980.

Forfurther reading, see Eva Speare, "Twenty Decades in Plymouth, NH, Littleton, 1963 and "Plymouth Past/Present," Plymouth Historical Society, 1985. The Plymouth Historical Society has an album of photographs that chronicle the commission and dedication of the statue.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, New Hampshire survey, 1993.

Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985.

Union Leader, Aug. 13, 1997, pg. A-1.

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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