Located in Scott Circle, the Daniel Webster Memorial honors the multi-faceted legacy of the famous statesman. A practicing lawyer, orator, senator and congressman of New Hampshire, Webster’s memorial is one of a few in DC that honors a statesman.
Donated by Stilson Hutchins, the founder of the Washington Post, the bronze statue rests on a granite pedestal designed in a Neoclassical style by Italian sculptor Gaetano Trentanove. Dedicated in 1900 for Webster’s 118th birthday, the memorial’s pedestal features some key moments in his career, but does not capture all of the important events Webster took part in in his life. Born in New Hampshire, Webster became one of the nation’s leading lawyers, taking part in three foundational U.S. Supreme Court cases while in practice. In both McCulloch v. Maryland and Gibbons v. Ogden, Webster successfully argued the cases that established federal and state governments’ powers. In Dartmouth v. Woodward, Webster’s win created precedent for contract clauses applying to both public and private institutions. In addition to his legal career, Webster’s oratory skills added to his fame; the Hayne-Webster Debates of 1830 and his speech at the Bunker Hill Monument attest to his skills in the reliefs featured on the pedestal of the memorial.
The memorial stands as a tribute to Webster’s legacy and impact on the early history of the United States, as well as the artistic style of a Neoclassical sculpture completed during this time. While it does not speak to every accomplishment of Webster’s, it does call attention to his influence, as well as the broader importance of this time period.
DC Inventory: February 22, 2007
National Register: October 12, 2007
]]>Although he is depicted in this bronze pedestrian statue as a Masonic leader in civilian dress rather than a military man, Albert Pike was a senior officer in the Confederate Army. The Albert Pike Memorial, erected by the Supreme Council, Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, is the only public sculpture in DC to commemorate a Confederate general.
While Masons lobbied Congress for land to erect their planned monument to Pike in the 1890s, Union Army veterans in the Grand Army of the Republic organization petitioned their Congressmen to refuse the request due to Pike’s allegiance to the Confederacy. However, Congress was satisfied with the Masons' reassurance that Pike would be depicted as a civilian rather than as a soldier.
The land for the memorial was approved on April 9, 1898. Designed by Gaetano Trentanove, the statue was dedicated on October 23, 1901. The figure of Pike stands eleven feet tall upon a granite pedestal, featuring the allegorical Goddess of Masonry, who holds the banner of the Scottish Rite.
The Albert Pike Memorial has a long history as a site of protest. Dating back to the efforts of Union veterans to prevent the statue from being erected, many have argued over the years for removal of the statue due to Pike's racism and role in the Confederacy. In 1992, members of the LaRouche movement began a series of protests demanding the memorial be removed, citing Pike's alleged links with the KKK. During one such event, LaRouche supporters draped Pike's statue with a KKK pointed hat and gown.
In 2017, following the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, VA, interest spread throughout many cities and states to remove Confederate statues and memorials from public land. The day after the rally, protesters gathered at the Pike Memorial and chanted "tear it down." Local government officials, including some members of the DC City Council, DC Attorney General Karl Racine, and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, asked the National Park Service to remove the memorial. In July 2019, Norton introduced a bill directing that the statue be removed. The Albert Pike Memorial was toppled and burned on Juneteenth of 2020, as protests continued across the country in response to the murder of George Floyd. Protesters used rope and chains to topple the Pike statue, doused it with a flammable liquid, and ignited it. The following day, the National Park Service removed the statue. Covered with graffiti, the pedestal remained in place.
In 2025, under the direction of the Trump Administration, the National Park Service restored the statue to the Albert Pike Memorial.
DC Inventory: March 3, 1979 National Register: September 20, 1978