[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 209 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]
1st Session
S. RES. 209
Recognizing and honoring Woodstock, Vermont, native Hiram Powers for
his extraordinary and enduring contributions to American sculpture.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 31 (legislative day, July 21), 2003
Mr. Jeffords (for himself, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Warner, Ms. Stabenow, Mr.
Dodd, Mr. Bayh, Mr. Akaka, Mr. Allen, Mr. Bennett, Mr. Bond, Mrs.
Boxer, Mr. Burns, Mr. Byrd, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Cochran, Mr. DeWine, Mr.
Domenici, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Feinstein, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Hatch, Ms.
Mikulski, Mr. Miller, Mr. Pryor, Mr. Reid, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Schumer,
Mr. Gregg, Mr. Specter, Mr. Breaux, Mr. Carper, Mr. Conrad, Mr. Inouye,
Mr. Lieberman, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Johnson, Mr.
Kohl, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Lugar, and Mr. Lott) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
September 25, 2003
Reported by Mr. Hatch, without amendment
September 25, 2003
Considered and agreed to
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing and honoring Woodstock, Vermont, native Hiram Powers for
his extraordinary and enduring contributions to American sculpture.
Whereas Hiram Powers is one of the preeminent artists in American sculpture;
Whereas Hiram Powers, in the words of the director and curator of the Houston
Museum of Fine Arts, was the artist who ``put American sculpture on the
map,'' gaining international fame and providing unprecedented support
for the notion of the United States as a country capable of producing
artists equal to or better than their international counterparts;
Whereas Powers' 1844 sculpture ``Greek Slave'' became, in the words of Powers
biographer Richard Wunder, ``a telling symbol'' of freedom for Americans
in the pre-Civil War years and remains unequaled in popularity among
American sculptures;
Whereas Powers' bust of President Andrew Jackson is widely considered the finest
portrait ever sculpted of the president, as well as one of the noblest
examples of portraiture ever created by an American sculptor;
Whereas the Congress of the United States, in recognition of Powers'
extraordinary talents, awarded him commissions to execute the statues of
John Marshall, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson that stand today
in the United States Capitol;
Whereas Powers preserved through his sculpture the memory of numerous other
great Americans, including George Washington, John Quincy Adams, Daniel
Webster, John C. Calhoun, Martin Van Buren, and Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow;
Whereas Powers was born in 1805 in Woodstock, Vermont, and happily spent his
early years in that town;
Whereas throughout his life, Powers held sacred the memories of his childhood in
Woodstock and drew upon these memories as inspiration for his work,
saying, ``dreams often take me back to Woodstock and set me down upon
the green hills''; and
Whereas the citizens of Woodstock, Vermont, are preparing to celebrate the
bicentennial of Hiram Powers' birth with exhibits, symposiums, and other
commemorative activities: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate recognizes and honors Woodstock, Vermont,
native Hiram Powers for his extraordinary and enduring contributions to
American sculpture.
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