WELCOME to the “Hermon A. MacNeil” — Virtual Gallery & Museum !
~ This Gallery celebrates Hermon Atkins MacNeil, American sculptor of the Beaux Arts School. MacNeil led a generation of sculptors in capturing many fading Native American images and American history in the realism of this classic style.
~ World’s Fairs, statues, public monuments, coins, and buildings across to country. Hot-links (on the lower right) lead to photos & info of works by MacNeil.
~ Hundreds of stories and photos posted here form this virtual MacNeil Gallery of works all across the U.S.A. New York to New Mexico — Oregon to South Carolina.
~ 2016 marked the 150th Anniversary of Hermon MacNeil’s birth on February 27,
Take a Virtual Journey
This website seeks to transport you through miles and years with a few quick clicks of a mouse or keyboard or finger swipes on an iPad.
Perhaps you walk or drive by one of MacNeil's many sculptures daily. Here you can gain awareness of this artist and his works.
For over one hundred years his sculptures have graced our parks, boulevards, and parkways; buildings, memorials, and gardens; campuses, capitols, and civic centers; museums, coinage, and private collections.
Vandalism on June 29, 2020 left MacNeil’s statue “bleeding” red paint of of the 104 year-old marble monument.
The news arrived this morning from Antonio Bueti, a New York native, MacNeil buff, and Friend ofHermonAtkinsMacNeil.com/
Three weeks ago, I posted Photos and the story of BLM Protesters marching through the Arch during demonstrations over the death of George Floyd. CLICK HERE
Both Statues on the Arch were attacked. Hermon A. MacNeil and Alexander Stirling Calder made the pair of companion pieces that sit on the supporting walls of the Arch at the end of Fifth Avenue. One was “The Soldier” and the other was “The President.”
“We had to work together on those statues, Calder and I,” said Mr. MacNeil, “and we had some hot arguments over them, though we are good friends. Of course, each of us had his own statue to do, but we had to treat them in the same restrained manner, to fit each other and the Arch itself”J. Walker McSpadden, Famous Sculptors of America: Books for Libraries Press, Freeport, NY, 1924, reprint 1968
MacNeil and Calder had their work placed on the Arch several years after it was constructed.
Dylan Roof was indited for murder in the Charleston Church Massacre on July 17, 2015. “In December 2016 he was convicted of 33 federalhate crime and murder charges. On January 10, 2017, he was sentenced to death for these crimes.[9] https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/charleston-church-shooting/dylann-roof-indicted-murder-church-massacre-n388066
Turbulent times raise issues of removal and/or further vandalism.
Above the rally, MacNeil’s likeness of General Washington guarded the rear flanks of the marchers.
Protesters marched at Washington Square Park in Manhattan on Monday.(June 9, 2020) [Credit…Demetrius Freeman for The New York Times]
The photo shows H. A. MacNeil‘s statue of George Washington looking down on 1000’s of Protesters as they remember George Floyd and march for Justice two weeks after his death at the hands of four Minneapolis Police officers.
MacNeil’s statue has seen many protests in its 104 years up on that pedestal of the arch, BUT nothing as moving as this. Alexander Sterling Calder‘s statue of President Washington looks on from the left at the crowd. (FOR Bernie Sanders Rally in 2016, CLICK HERE)
Protests continue nationwide, with signs of an ebb after dark.
Two weeks after George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis, demonstrations against police violence continued to fill the streets of cities and towns across the country on Monday.
About 1,000 protesters gathered in Los Angeles near a memorial for those killed by the police. Thousands more called for police reforms before a City Council meeting in Charlotte, N.C. And more than 1,000 made their way to a march that began in Washington Square Park in Manhattan.
“This is a young, young revolution,” said Vidal Guzman, 29, as he led marchers down Fifth Avenue in New York. “These are teenagers, people in their 20s, 30-year-olds. We have energy. We believe in what we’re doing, and we’re not going to let up.”
Still, there were signs in parts of the country that the demonstrations that have raged through cities after dark over the past two weeks appeared to be ramping down in many places.
PHILADELPHIA – Another BLM Protest march passes the March down the Ben Franklin Parkway from the Art Museum to City Hall.
The Rally-goers pass between the two 60 foot columns of MacNeil, Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Monument
PHILADELPHIA — Thousands of people demanding justice for George Floyd flooded the streets of downtown Philadelphia on Saturday, chanting “No justice, no peace!”
Demonstrators gathered near the Philadelphia Museum of Art and its famous “Rocky” steps before setting off for the City Hall area, with the line of marchers stretching for several city blocks along the tree-lined Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
The protesters circled City Hall, clapping and shouting, “Black Lives Matter!” as some residents of an apartment building held signs on their balconies reading “BLM” and “Keep Going, Philly,” the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
To police officers and National Guard members, they chanted: “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!”
Qadir Sabur, 22, handing out water and snacks and holding a sign that read “Don’t just say Black Lives Matter, show us,” said that in addition to opposition to police brutality, African Americans in the city should benefit from the same opportunities in jobs and education.
SOLDIERS AND SAILORS MONUMENT Philadelphia
Philadelphia – Hermon MacNeil – “Soldiers And Sailors Monument” – South pylon or Sailors side – Being photographed by Dan Leininger, webmaster).
PHILADELPHIA —->>>
~ “Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Monument”~ Soldiers side North Pylon
“I’m not just seeing blacks come together today as one,” he said, “I’m seeing everyone coming together as one,” he told the Inquirer.
By late afternoon, many protesters had left but others lingered around the Art Museum area or along the parkway. Smaller demonstrations were held in other areas, including one by the African American Museum in Philadelphia near Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.
City officials earlier announced street closures, saying much of the city center, from the Delaware River to the Schuylkill River, would be closed to vehicles. A curfew will be in effect again overnight, from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., during which time only people with essential duties are allowed out.
Smaller groups also marched in other cities around the state, including several hundred in Pittsburgh and the surrounding area.
Floyd, who was black, died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee into his neck even as he pleaded for air and stopped moving. His death has sparked protests over police treatment of African Americans and racial injustice nationwide
Pennsylvania Governor speaks on the Rally s and needed reforms for Pennsylvania: CLICK HERE:
Hermon A. MacNeil’s Standing Liberty Quarter is a rare Masterpiece. Issued by the U.S. Mint over a century ago, it no longer circulates in the market place.
“M” The modest signature allowed for designer MacNeil
As a child in the early 1950’s, my mother, Ollie Frances McNeil, showed me the image of Lady Liberty on MacNeil’s design. She pointed our the distinctive “M” on the base of the obverse.
“That stands for ‘McNeil'” she told me. “Hermon was your great uncle on my side of the family.” Mom was very proud of her McNeil lineage and she intentionally passed a good portion of that pride on to me as a child. Giving me the middle name of “Neil” remains a continual reminder of that fact.
A yellowed copy of a 1916 newspaper clipping declares: “Herman Atkins MacNeil, Designer of the New Quarter”
Hermon died on October 2, 1947 at his home in College Point, Queens, NY after a long illness. I have no memory of that as an event or of that time in our family. (I was just a child — 2 years, 3 months and 2 days old.)
In the early 1950’s, I remember handling “Standing Liberty Quarters” in the change we received from my brother’s Saturday night newspaper corner in East Saint Louis. (We hawked three papers at 38th and St. Clair Avenue, yelling “Pap-er-ers! Post, Globe, and Journal.)
The yellowed news clipping at the right is from the estate of Walter Pratt, Hermon’s first cousin from Massachusetts. The Pratt’s saved this clipping of Hermon from the newspaper.
The Liberty Standing Quarter was no longer minted after 1930, but it remained in circulation for many years. Until the hoarding of silver coins in the 1960 and the minting of silver clad quarters in 1965
Advent of Copper Clad coinage:
“The United States first began minting copper-nickel clad coins in 1965. That was after several years of rising silver prices and a severe coin shortage that the U.S. Mint partly blamed on people hoarding silver coins from circulation. The dime and quarter were first struck in copper-nickel clad in 1965.” [From https://coins.thefuntimesguide.com/clad_coins/ accessed on 3-4-2020]
Edward A. Van Orden
Edward Van Orden’s recent article on Collecting the SLQ has been referenced in a previous posting on March 5, 2020. I posted the first part of his article in that post. He has a excellent suggestions for collecting SLQs on a sensible budget. Read the last part of his article at this link:
Benford, Timothy B., Jr. “MacNeil’s Liberty: Art or Obscenity?” The Numismatist (December 2003).
Brothers, Eric. “New York City: Mecca of Numis- matic Artistry.” The Numismatist (November 2013). Cline, J.H. Standing Liberty Quarters, 3rd edition.
Palm Harbour, FL: author, 1997.
Dolnick, Michael M. “Design Changes on the Lib-
erty Standing Quarter.” The Numismatist (Septem- ber 1954).
Doyle, Al. “Class of 1916, Part 2.” The Numismatist (October 2016).
____. “MacNeil’s Standing Liberty Quarter among Most Artistic.” Coin World’s Coin Values (November 2004).
Duffield, Frank G. “Slight Change in the Die of Quarter Dollars.” The Numismatist (June 1926).
Kelman, Keith N. Standing Liberty Quarters. Nashua, NH: International Numismatica Corporation, 1976. (ANA Library Catalog No. GB24.K4) .
LaMarre, Tom. “MacNeil’s Standing Liberty Remains a Favorite.” Coins magazine (September 30, 2009).
Lange, David W. “The Coinage of 1921.” The Numismatist (December 2003).
____. “Collecting Standing Liberty Quarters.” The Numismatist (December 2003).
____. “The Impossible Dream.” The Numismatist (October 2005).
____. “1923-S Coinage, Part 2.” The Numismatist (September 2011).
____. “The Standing Liberty Quarter.” The Nu- mismatist (July 2016).
Moran, Michael F. Striking Change: The Great Artistic Collaboration of Theodore Roosevelt Augus- tus Saint-Gaudens. Atlanta: Whitman Publishing, 2008. (GB40.M6s)
Sieber, Arlyn G. “Images of Liberty.” The Numis- matist (July 2016).
Woolley, Robert W. “Symbolism of the New Coins of 1916.” Report of the Director of the Mint (July 15, 1916).
Protesters in the shadow of Hermon MacNeil’s statue of Pres. McKinley scream outside of the Capitol doors. Columbus, Ohio
Angry Protestors at the Ohio Capitol screamed over their governor’s “Stay-at-home” orders outside the locked door. That same day, five other states experienced protests. “LIBERATION” of all these states was “whispered” by Donald Trump’s Twitter feed the day before. (see below … )
MacNeil’s sculpture design for the Award Medals at the Pan American Exhibitition, Buffalo, NY 1901 (reverse). All award medals were struck from the same design whether in Bronze, silver or gold. These are silver medals.
MacNeil exhibited at the 1901 Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, NY where McKinley was slain. He also designed the medallion that was awarded for the gold, silver, and bronze medals for exhibit winners.
BUT these “PROTESTORS” didn’t seem to have any awareness of history (neither does our 45th President) or of a global COVID-19 PANDEMIC. They exhibit their irrational “fantasy world” as a political statement molded after “TRUMP RALLIES.”
Jeff Darcy offers an apropos opinion and cartoon below:
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The “Enabler-in-Chief” President Donald Trump has helped incite protests in multiple states against lockdown measures to fight Covid-19 by tweeting for states to be “Liberated” and dismissing the protests as slight cases of “cabin fever” just as he had initially dismissed the coronavirus spread in the United States.
On Friday, Trump posted in a series of tweets calls to “LIBERATE MINNESOTA”. “LIBERATE MICHIGAN” and “LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment.”
All three states have Democratic Governors and are pivotal in Trump’s reelection bid. [https://www.cleveland.com/darcy/2020/04/trump-liberate-tweets-enable-protesters-darcy-cartoon.html]
Credit: Jeff Darcy at https://www.cleveland.com/darcy/2020/04/trump-liberate-tweets-enable-protesters-darcy-cartoon.html
McKinley’s assassin was an anarchist.
By Henry Donovan – NOTE 2
Leon Frank Czołgosz (Polish pronunciation: [ˈt͡ʂɔwɡɔʂ], roughly “CHOW-gosh“; May 5, 1873 – October 29, 1901) was an American steelworker and anarchist who assassinated American PresidentWilliam McKinley on September 6, 1901 in Buffalo, New York, with a .32 Caliber Iver Johnson revolver. Czolgosz was executed seven weeks later on October 29, 1901.
Czolgosz believed there was a great injustice in American society, an inequality which allowed the wealthy to enrich themselves by exploiting the poor. He concluded that the reason for this was the structure of government itself. Then he learned of a European crime which changed his life: On July 29, 1900, King Umberto I of Italy had been shot dead by anarchist Gaetano Bresci. Bresci told the press that he had decided to take matters into his own hands for the sake of the common man.[22] [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Czolgosz]
The 45th PRESIDENT has established himself as a true “Liar-in Chief” …
DOES the 45th PRESIDENT also PROMOTE anarchy?
Evaluate that question for yourself?
Hint — a definition:
anarchy
[ˈanərkē] NOUN
a state of disorder due to absence or nonrecognition of authority.
“he must ensure public order in a country threatened with anarchy”
absence of government and absolute freedom of the individual, regarded as a political ideal.
McKinley’s assassin was a documented anarchist.
McKinley’s assassin, Leon Frank Czołgosz was an unemployed, angry, anarchist.
Leon Czolgosz shoots President McKinley with a revolver concealed under a cloth rag. Clipping of a wash drawing by T. Dart Walker. [Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_William_McKinley]
On September 6, Czolgosz went to the exposition armed with a concealed .32 caliberIver Johnson “Safety Automatic”revolver[25][26] he had purchased four days earlier.[27] He approached McKinley, who had been standing in a receiving line inside the Temple of Music, greeting the public for ten minutes. At 4:07 P.M., Czolgosz reached the front of the line. McKinley extended his hand. Czolgosz slapped it aside and shot the President in the abdomen twice, at point blank range: the first bullet ricocheted off a coat button and lodged in McKinley’s jacket; the other seriously wounded him in his stomach. McKinley died eight days later on September 14 of an infection which had spread from the wound.
Members of the crowd immediately attacked Czolgosz, as McKinley slumped backward. McKinley said, “Go easy on him, boys.”[28][29] The police struggled to keep the crowd off Czolgosz.[30] He was held in a cell at Buffalo’s 13th Precinct house at 346 Austin Street until he was moved to police headquarters.
SO DOES the 45th PRESIDENT PROMOTE anarchy?
IS the 45th PRESIDENT ASSASSINATING231 years of Democracy in the USA ?
Will this 2020 Global PANDEMIC render the final verdict on his reign of Twitter-ing Fantasy?
The answers to these questions await us like a Virus, contagious and deadly!
http://idnc.library.illinois.edu/cgi-bin/illinois?a=d&d=CHE19010914&e=——-en-20–1–txt-txIN——-#, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41332897
CREDIT: Joshua A. Bickel, Columbus Dispatch via USA TODAY NETWORK, NOTE: Steve Schmidt thinks this photo deserves a Pulitzer Prize.
At the stately doors of the Columbus, Ohio Capitol, protestors “SCREAM” displeasure with their Governor’s “Stay-at-Home-Order” in COVID-19 PANDEMIC.
A few feet away, Hermon MacNeil’s tribute to assassinated President William McKinley (former Ohio governor, 1892-1896) stands in silent memorial to his quiet, reasonable, public service to Ohio and our nation. The comparison is striking.
These irate faces certainly contrast with the McKinley memorial statue and its four adjoining figures that MacNeil named “Prosperity” and “Peace”, and “Industry” and “Learning”. In 1906 MacNeil singled out these four allegorical themes to interpret the life and service of the slain President, William McKinley.
“Prosperity and Peace”
These contorted faces are not alone today as the USA soars to over 600,000 cases of Corona Virus (Covid-19) across the nation and over 2 million (2,000,000+) cases globally. So, furious citizens in six states or more (Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Utah, North Carolina, Virginia) have raised screaming voices, honking horns, and waving protests. They target the requests of governors (like McKinley) to curtail of their work and movement during the spread of this deadly PANDEMIC. It is becoming the defining PLAGUE of this 21st Century.
Edward Van Orden describes the Standing Liberty quarter dollar by saying:
“Eversince it first appeared in circulation in January 1917, the Standing Liberty quarter (SLQ) has been considered among the most beautiful U.S. coins ever produced. Its historically symbolic and sculptural design played a vital role in elevating the artistry of U.S. silver coinage.
Hermon A. MacNeil Commemorative sketched by Artist Charles D. Daughtrey as the seventh work in his Series of Coin Designers is available at http://www.cdaughtrey.com/
Crafted by American sculptor Hermon Atkins MacNeil (1866-1947), this iconic image of Liberty was the winning entry in a contest that drew upward of 50 submissions. An artist of some renown, MacNeil designed the east pediment of the United States Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., and sculpted a rendering of General George Washington for the Washington Square Arch in New York’s Greenwich Village. MacNeil’s Liberty spoke to the movement in American numismatics initiated in 1904 by President Theodore Roosevelt and preeminent sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. In the spirit of Saint-Gaudens’ double eagle (gold $20)and
Victor D. Brenner’s Lincoln cent designs, – the quarter found its renaissance, boasting a style hearkening back to antiquity that intertwined artisan form with transactional function
At a time when most of Europe was actively engaged in the First World War, President Woodrow Wilson, elected on a peace platform in 1916, was biding our country’s time before directly involving the United States militarily. It was against this backdrop that the Standing Liberty quarter was unveiled to an eager public.
Robert W Wollery, Director of US Mint 1915-1916
The design fittingly reflected America’s increasing global involvement, epitomized by Miss Liberty’s confident, forward movement, holding a shield in her left hand for protection and an olive branch in her right for peace. Our nation, for the most part, desired peace but was prepared to defend itself and its way of life. In the words of Mint Director Robert W. Woolley in July 1916, the design seemed to typify “the awakening interest of the country in its own protection.”
Benford, Timothy B., Jr. “MacNeil’s Liberty: Art or Obscenity?” The Numismatist (December 2003).
Brothers, Eric. “New York City: Mecca of Numis- matic Artistry.” The Numismatist (November 2013). Cline, J.H. Standing Liberty Quarters, 3rd edition.
Palm Harbour, FL: author, 1997.
Dolnick, Michael M. “Design Changes on the Lib-
erty Standing Quarter.” The Numismatist (Septem- ber 1954).
Doyle, Al. “Class of 1916, Part 2.” The Numismatist (October 2016).
____. “MacNeil’s Standing Liberty Quarter among Most Artistic.” Coin World’s Coin Values (November 2004).
Duffield, Frank G. “Slight Change in the Die of Quarter Dollars.” The Numismatist (June 1926).
Kelman, Keith N. Standing Liberty Quarters. Nashua, NH: International Numismatica Corporation, 1976. (ANA Library Catalog No. GB24.K4) .
LaMarre, Tom. “MacNeil’s Standing Liberty Remains a Favorite.” Coins magazine (September 30, 2009).
Lange, David W. “The Coinage of 1921.” The Numismatist (December 2003).
____. “Collecting Standing Liberty Quarters.” The Numismatist (December 2003).
____. “The Impossible Dream.” The Numismatist (October 2005).
____. “1923-S Coinage, Part 2.” The Numismatist (September 2011).
____. “The Standing Liberty Quarter.” The Nu- mismatist (July 2016).
Moran, Michael F. Striking Change: The Great Artistic Collaboration of Theodore Roosevelt Augus- tus Saint-Gaudens. Atlanta: Whitman Publishing, 2008. (GB40.M6s)
Sieber, Arlyn G. “Images of Liberty.” The Numis- matist (July 2016).
Woolley, Robert W. “Symbolism of the New Coins of 1916.” Report of the Director of the Mint (July 15, 1916).
This MacNeil Medallion is a 3" bronze medal with nickel plating minted in 2016 to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Hermon Atkins MacNeil and the 100th Centenary year of the first minting of the Standing Liberty Quarter dollar. The face duplicates the obverse of MacNeil's original sculpture of Miss Liberty from 1916. The "M" beneath the 13th star is the only form of signature allowed for the sculptor.
<== NOW AVAILABLE ON EBAY the Hermon A. MacNeil Medallion
Nearby or far away, there is no ONE place to go and appreciate this wide range of art pieces. Located in cities from east to west coast, found indoors and out, public and hidden, these creations point us toward the history and values in which our lives as Americans have taken root.
Webmaster: Daniel Neil Leininger ~ HAMacNeil@gmail.com
Hosting & Tech Support: Leiturgia Communications, Inc.
COME BACK & WATCH US GROW
WE DESIRE YOUR DIGITAL PHOTOS – Suggestions
1. Take digital photos of the entire work from several angles, including the surroundings.
2. Take close up photos of details that capture your imagination.
3. Look for MacNeil’s signature, often on bronze works. Photograph it too! See examples above.
4. Please, include a photo of yourself and/or those with you standing beside the work.
5. Add your comments or a blog of your adventure. It adds personal interest for viewers.
6. Send photos to HAMacNeil@gmail.com Contact me there with any questions. ~~ Webmaster
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