Wassell Memorial, (sculpture).

Wassell Memorial, (sculpture).

Frank Hubert Venn Associates, fabricator.

Wassell Memorial, (sculpture).

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: marble; Base: marble and granite.

Sculpture: approx. 6 ft. x 26 in. x 26 in.; Base: approx. 6 ft. 4 in. x 5 ft. x 5 ft.

F. H. Venn & Co., Memphis (Front of plinth, incised:) I TRUST IN THE LORD (Front of base:) JOHN WASSELL/BORN AT/KIDDEMINSTER/ENGLAND./FEB. 15, 1813;/DIED/JAN 29, 1881./WASSELL (Side of base:) MARGARET SPOTTS/WIFE OF/JOHN WASSELL/BORN AT/WILMINGTON, DEL./MARCH 8, 1815;/DIED/SEPT. 6, 1895. (Back of base:) HERBERT WASSELL/BORN/MAY 22, 1859,/DIED/JUNE 27, 1905./AGED 46 YEARS./Peace be unto thee Oh my Brother (Other side of base:) MARY FRANCES WASSELL/BORN AT/OAKLAND GROVE,/PRAIRIE CO ARK./MARCH 31, 1845;/DIED/AUG. 2, 1863. Founder's mark appears.

An angel stands over a gravestone with wings extending down to bare feet. The angel wears an off-the-shoulder, short-sleeved gown, fastened at the waist and with pooling at the feet. On the angel's head is a five-point star, and the proper right arm holds an open scroll in front of the chest. The proper right arm hangs by the side, holding a trumpet. The sculpture is atop a multitiered, decorated base with inscriptions on all four sides.

Homage -- Wassell, John

Homage -- Spotts, Margaret

Homage -- Wassell, Herbert

Homage -- Wassell, Mary Frances

Religion -- Angel

Occupation -- Political -- Mayor

Occupation -- Law -- Lawyer

Occupation -- Industry -- Lumber

Object -- Musical Instrument -- Trumpet

Object -- Written Matter -- Scroll

Dress -- Accessory -- Hat

Outdoor Sculpture -- Arkansas -- Little Rock

Administered by City of Little Rock, Mount Holly Cemetery Association, 4300 Cantrell Road, Little Rock, Arkansas 72207

Located Mount Holly Cemetery, Broadway & 12th Streets, Cedar, Little Rock, Arkansas

John Wassell was a lumberman and attorney, and was appointed Reconstruction mayor of Little Rock by President Andrew Johnson. He was also the finishing contractor for Little Rock's Old State House. For related information see: Sybil F. Crawford and Mary Fletcher Worthen's "Mount Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, Arkansas. Burial Index, 1843-1993," Little Rock: August House, 1993, pg. 242; and, Sybil F. Crawford's "JUBILEE: The First 150 Years of Mount Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, Arkansas," Little Rock: August House, Inc., 1993, pg. 28, 45.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Arkansas survey, 1993.

Crawford, Sybil F., "JUBILEE: The First 150 Years of Mount Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, Arkansas," Little Rock: August House, Inc., 1993, pg. 45.

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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