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"The
entire city of Washington D.C. is a monument to the Civil
War." So says Professor Smith, and so began our tour of just
some of the major Civil War monuments in our city.
 Our
first "monumental" stop was at Lincoln Park, formerly a hospital
site during the Civil War. Dr. Smith began with the newest
statue there, that of Mary McLeod Bethune. She is depicted
as handing a diploma to two school children, symbolically
offering them freedom via education and hard work. Opposite
her in the park is Emancipation. In this statue, just
as Bethune offers a new form of freedom to her generation,
Abraham Lincoln's hand is seen above the shoulder of a rising
slave, emancipating a previous generation.
 Directly
opposite Lincoln Park to the west, is the awe-inspiring statue
of Ulysses S. Grant at the Capitol's reflecting pool. It
took sculptor Henry Shrady 14 years, and his life, to complete
this statue, the second largest equestrian statue in the
world. Dr. Smith discussed the positioning of this statue.
Grant's back is toward the Capitol Building, as if defending
it; Grant faces Lincoln, sitting in his Memorial across the
National Mall; then our vision is drawn beyond
the river, into the Virginia hillside where Robert E. Lee's
home, Arlington House, can be seen--completing a Civil War
drama in marble, bronze, and brick.
We then bussed by several other pieces, including tributes to General Meade;
and the statues of Generals Scott, Hancock, Sherman, and Thomas. Sheridan's
statue is the farthest west of the Civil War generals, fitting, since his life
after the war was spent on the Western plains.
 Last,
we toured the unfinished site at the African American Civil
War Memorial. It is located in the Shaw District of Washington,
across the street from Grimke School, named for the ex-slave,
author, and Harvard Law School graduate, Archibald Grimke.
Dr. Smith contrasted the events in dedicating the other monuments--parades,
Presidents in attendance, and school closings--with the quiet
dedication of this small but elegant statue commemorating
African Americans who participated in the Civil War. Currently
unfinished, the monument will be surrounded by low, concentric
walls, listing the names of the 180,000 African American
soldiers, sailors, and citizens, who died in the war. Most
were never properly buried. After more than 135 years, this
would be the only memorial to them, giving their many descendants
a focal point to commemorate their lives and sacrifices.
 Dr.
Smith's narratives included not only the history, but also
why and how the subjects of these statues were selected and
placed. And yes, he told us about the politics behind these
decisions, and the impressions, both good and bad, these
decisions have left on the succeeding generations.
Professor Edward C. Smith is the Director of American Studies and Special Assistant
to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at American University.
Photos by Susan Dennis
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