38°54′20.4″N 77°01′55.0″W / 38.905667°N 77.031944°W | |
Equestrian statue of George Henry Thomas | |
Part of | Civil War Monuments in Washington, D.C. |
---|---|
NRHP reference No. | 78000257[1] |
Added to NRHP | September 20, 1978[2] |
Location | Thomas Circle, Washington, D.C., United States |
Designer | John Quincy Adams Ward (sculptor) John L. Smithmeyer, Paul J. Pelz (architects) |
Material | Bronze (sculpture) Granite (base) |
Height | 16 ft (4.9 m) |
Opening date | November 19, 1879 |
Dedicated to | George Henry Thomas |
Major General George Henry Thomas, also known as the Thomas Circle Monument, is an equestrian sculpture in Washington, D.C. that honors Civil War general George Henry Thomas. The monument is located in the center of Thomas Circle, on the border of the downtown and Logan Circle neighborhoods. It was sculpted by John Quincy Adams Ward, best known for his work on the statue of George Washington in Wall Street, Manhattan. Attendees at the dedication in 1879 included President Rutherford B. Hayes, Generals Irvin McDowell, Philip Sheridan, and William Tecumseh Sherman, senators and thousands of soldiers.
The sculpture is one of eighteen Civil War monuments in Washington, D.C., which were collectively listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. It is considered by art critics and historians to be one of the best equestrian statues in the city. The statue, which rests on an oval pedestal, and the surrounding park are owned and maintained by the National Park Service, a federal agency of the Interior Department.