Bust of Ashbel Parsons Willard facts for kids

The sculpture of Ashbel Parsons Willard is a special piece of public art by an American sculptor named Henry Dexter. You can find it on the second floor of the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. This building is the capital of Indiana. The sculpture is a bust, which means it shows only the head and shoulders of a person. It sits in a small space called a niche near the main round room, called the rotunda.

This bust is made from a plaster cast. It has many layers of white paint. On the front of its base, there is a small mark that says it was made in Boston, Massachusetts. This bust is actually one of 31 portraits that Henry Dexter created between 1859 and 1860. The original bust is kept at the Smithsonian museum. The mark on the bust is hard to read because of all the paint. But it seems to say 1860, which is the year Governor Ashbel Parsons Willard passed away.

What is the Ashbel Parsons Willard Bust?

This sculpture is about 23.5 inches (59.7 cm) tall from the top of the head to the bottom of the base. The base is 9 inches (22.9 cm) wide and 11.5 inches (29.2 cm) long. The head itself measures about 24.5 inches (62.2 cm) around.

There is an oval mark on the front of the base. It says: "HENRY DEXTER FECIT, BOSTON 1860, COPY RIGHT SECURED." This means Henry Dexter made it in Boston in 1860, and he owned the rights to it. Some parts of the bust show wear, where the white paint has chipped off. You can see the plaster underneath. The bust was likely made as one piece and then painted white. On the back, it says in fancy writing: Gov. Willard, Ind.. The inside of the bust is hollow. The plaster is about 1 to 2 inches thick.

The bust shows Governor Willard with a serious face. It looks a bit like a painting of him by George W. Morrison. However, Dexter's sculpture gives Willard a fuller mouth and a narrower nose. His hair is styled similarly in both artworks. It is parted on the left side and combed over his head. His hair has long curls that add volume and hang below his ears. This was a popular hairstyle for men in the late 1850s and early 1860s.

The Story Behind the Bust

Henry Dexter made the bust of Ashbel Parsons Willard sometime after April 25, 1860. This was when Governor Moses Wisner of Michigan wrote a letter introducing Dexter. Dexter traveled by train with his art supplies. So, he probably arrived in Indianapolis in late April or early May.

There are no records of Dexter's exact time in Indiana. However, Governor Willard was going through a difficult period. He was facing questions about how money was used for a prison project. He was also very ill with tuberculosis, a sickness he had his whole life. This led to his early death on October 4, 1860. He was the first Indiana governor to die while in office. He was also the youngest governor ever elected in Indiana.

Dexter hoped that Indiana would buy a copy of his bust. But Governor Willard was not very popular at that time. So, it's not known exactly how the state got the plaster bust that is now in the Statehouse. The original bust, which has a larger base, is now part of the Smithsonian Institution's collection.

Henry Dexter created 31 portrait busts of governors between June 1859 and June 1860. These sculptures captured important leaders just before the American Civil War. Many of these men later became key advisors to President Abraham Lincoln. Some also held important military roles during the war between the North and South.

Meet the Artist: Henry Dexter

Portrait of Artist Henry Dexter, Boston. Published posthumously, 1891.

Henry Dexter (1806–1876) was a well-known American sculptor in the 1800s. He was born in Nelson, New York. After his father died, his family moved to Connecticut. There, he became an apprentice to a blacksmith. Dexter taught himself how to paint. He got some help from an artist named Francis Alexander, who was his wife's uncle.

In 1836, Dexter moved to Boston and opened his own portrait studio. Two years later, he started sculpting famous people. His first sculpture was of Reverend Dr. Anderson. Dexter learned everything on his own. He did not study European or classical Greek styles like some other artists. Because of this, he is considered one of the first truly American sculptors.

Henry Dexter created over 200 busts in plaster and marble. He made these between 1838 and 1875. Some of his most famous sculptures include portraits of Charles Dickens and President James Buchanan. His sculpture of President Buchanan was later used to design a U.S. postage stamp.

In the late 1850s, just before the Civil War, Henry Dexter had a big dream. He wanted to create a gallery of sculptures of all the U.S. presidents and governors of every state. He hoped this collection would help unite the country during a difficult time. He paid for this project himself at first. Dexter traveled about 20,000 miles with all his tools for sculpting. His plan was to sculpt each governor in clay, then make a plaster copy. He hoped that each state would then buy a marble version for $500. This would help him get back the money he spent.

This huge project started in 1859. Dexter first traveled to all the New England states. He had each governor pose for him. He sent the clay busts back to his workshop in Boston. Then, he traveled along the Mason–Dixon line and through the South. He returned North to sculpt Governor William Henry Bissell of Illinois, who had recently passed away. He then likely went to Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, and Indiana between April and June 1860. It is thought that Dexter was in Indiana in late April or early May. This is based on a letter from Michigan Governor Moses Wisner to Governor Willard dated April 25, 1860.

This trip resulted in 31 finished busts. Dexter wanted to display them in the United States Capitol building in Washington, D.C. However, because the Southern states had recently left the Union, the entire collection could not be shown. Dexter himself said that this project was a financial failure. It left him without much money for years after his 18 months of travel. But, historically, Dexter's sculptures of these important governors became a study of many powerful men during the Civil War. Dexter did not know how historically important his work would become. He just hoped to create a collection that would unite the nation's leaders.

After Henry Dexter died on June 23, 1876, most of his collection of governors' busts was given to the Smithsonian Institution in 1889. Some busts are still owned by private collectors. Others are in the collections of states that bought copies for themselves.