George Campbell Childress, (sculpture).

George Campbell Childress, (sculpture).

Josset, Raoul, 1899-1957, sculptor.

Nelson, Donald, 1907- , designer.

E. Gargani & Sons, founder.

George Campbell Childress, (sculpture).

Installed 1936.

Sculpture: bronze; Plinth: bronze; Base: concrete; Marker: granite.

Sculpture: approx. 8 x 5 x 4 ft.; Plinth: approx. 3 x 33 1/2 x 45 1/2 in.; Marker: approx. H. 9 ft. 2 in.

(On plinth, rear:) Raoul Josset E. Gargani - Sons FDRY. NY signed Founder's mark appears.

Portrait of George Campbell Childress. He stands, holding a document at his proper left side with both hands, a quill before it. He is wearing a short cape over an open, calf-length coat. The sculpture is mounted upon a short rectangular base and set adjacent to its original taller base shaft, now used as a commemorative marker.

Portrait male -- Childress, George Campbell -- Full length

Occupation -- Political

Outdoor Sculpture -- Texas -- Washington

Blinn College, Star of the Republic Museum, Route 1, Washington-on-the-Brazo State Historical Park, Washington, Texas 77880

The statue commemorates George Campbell Childress (1804-1841), an early Texas politician. He was chairman of the committee of five which drafted the Texas Declaration of Independence in 1836. The monument was erected by the State of Texas with funds appropriated by the federal government to commemorate the Texas centennial of independence. The sculpture was created by Raoul Josset; the original base was designed by Donald Nelson.

Text on the adjacent marker reads: GEORGE/CAMPBELL/CHILDRESS/BORN IN NASHVILLE/TENNESSEE . JANUARY/8 . 1804 . . DIED IN/GALVESTON TEXAS/OCTOBER 6 . 1841/BEFORE COMING TO/TEXAS IN DECEMBER/1835 . HE ASSISTED IN/RAISING FUNDS AND/SECURING VOLUNTEERS/FOR THE ARMY OF TEXAS/DELEGATE FROM THE MUNICIPALITY OF/MILAM TO THE/CONSTITUTIONAL/CONVENTION HELD/HERE FROM MARCH 1/TO 17 . 1836/CHAIRMAN OF THE/COMMITTEE OF FIVE/WHICH DRAFTED THE TEXAS DECLARATION/OF INDEPENDENCE/APPOINTED BY/PRESIDENT BURNET/MARCH 19 . 1836/AGENT OF TEXAS/AT WASHINGTON/TO SECURE THE/RECOGNITION OF/THE SOVEREIGNTY/AND INDEPENDENCE/OF TEXAS BY THE UNITED STATES/ERECTED BY THE STATE OF TEXAS 1936/WITH FUNDS APPROPRIATED BY THE FEDERAL/GOVERNMENT TO COMMEMORATE ONE/HUNDRED YEARS OF TEXAS INDEPENDENCE.

IAS files contain excerpt from Harold Schoen's "Monuments Erected by the State of Texas to Commemorate the Centenary of Texas Independence, The Report of the Commission of Control for Texas Centennial Celebrations," Austin, TX: Commission of Control for Texas Centennial Celebrations, 1938, pg. 73.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Texas survey, 1993.

Schoen, Harold, "Monuments Erected by the State of Texas to Commemorate the Centenary of Texas Independence, the Report of the Commission of Control for Texas Centennial Celebrations," Austin, TX: Commission of Control for Texas Centennial Celebrations, 1938, pg. 73.

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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