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Quiz about The US Capitol National Statuary Collection
Quiz about The US Capitol National Statuary Collection

The U.S. Capitol: National Statuary Collection Quiz


The United States Capitol is home to the National Statuary Hall Collection, which is composed of 100 statues, two from each state, honoring notable figures from American history. How much do you know about Statuary Hall and the collection housed therein?

A multiple-choice quiz by JHeaton. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
JHeaton
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
299,876
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Very Difficult
Avg Score
3 / 10
Plays
523
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Question 1 of 10
1. The law authorizing the creation of the National Statuary Hall Collection was enacted in 1864; what member of the House wrote this "monumental" legislation?
Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. The room in the Capitol that is now known as National Statuary Hall was originally intended to be used as what? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Despite the name, National Statuary Hall does not house the entirety of the National Statuary Hall Collection. How many statues were on display in Statuary Hall when the decision was made to relocate some of them?
Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Every State is entitled to contribute two statues to the National Statuary Hall Collection. What was the first state to contribute a statue? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. What was the last state to contribute a second statue to the National Statuary Hall Collection? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Several former U.S. Presidents are represented in the National Statuary Hall Collection. Who was the first? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Who was the first woman to be represented in the National Statuary Hall Collection?
Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Which of these sculptors created more statues for the National Statuary Hall Collection than any other artist? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Recent legislation allows a state to reclaim one of their statues and replace it with a new one. What what the first state to take advantage of this law? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. In legislation enacted in 2005, Congress was directed to obtain a statue of what civil rights leader for permanent display in the National Statuary Hall? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The law authorizing the creation of the National Statuary Hall Collection was enacted in 1864; what member of the House wrote this "monumental" legislation?

Answer: Justin Morrill

When making his proposal, Morrill asked, "To what end more useful or grand, and at the same time simple and inexpensive, can we devote it [the Chamber] than to ordain that it shall be set apart for the reception of such statuary as each State shall elect to be deserving of in this lasting commemoration?" His bill became law on July 2, 1864. Morrill, a Republican from Vermont, is also remembered for introducing the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act, which provided federal funding for the establishment of many public colleges and universities.
2. The room in the Capitol that is now known as National Statuary Hall was originally intended to be used as what?

Answer: The House of Representatives chamber

The House of Representatives met in the chamber now known as Statuary Hall until 1857, when the present House wing of the Capitol was completed.
3. Despite the name, National Statuary Hall does not house the entirety of the National Statuary Hall Collection. How many statues were on display in Statuary Hall when the decision was made to relocate some of them?

Answer: 65

Though the original plan was to display every statue in the Hall, the collection eventually grew to the point where the Hall was not just overcrowded and ugly, but structurally unable to support any more statues. A representative sample stayed in Statuary Hall while the others were relocated to other parts of the Capitol, at the discretion of the Joint Committee on the Library.
4. Every State is entitled to contribute two statues to the National Statuary Hall Collection. What was the first state to contribute a statue?

Answer: Rhode Island

Rhode Island's statue of Nathanial Greene, sculpted from marble by Henry Kirke Brown, was donated in 1870, two years before any other state. Of the states that were part of the Union when the legislation authorizing the National Statuary Hall Collection was enacted, Oregon was the last to contribute their first statue.
5. What was the last state to contribute a second statue to the National Statuary Hall Collection?

Answer: New Mexico

New Mexico's statue of the Pueblo Indian leader Po'pay, carved from marble by sculptor Cliff Fragua, joined the collection in 2005. Po'Pay, who organized the Pueblo Revolt against the Spanish, is one of six Native Americans in the Collection; the others are King Kamehameha I of Hawaii, Will Rogers of Oklahoma (who had Cherokee ancestors), Sakajawea of North Dakota, Sequoyah of Oklahoma, Chief Washakie of Wyoming, and Sarah Winnemucca of Nevada.
6. Several former U.S. Presidents are represented in the National Statuary Hall Collection. Who was the first?

Answer: James A. Garfield

Ohio donated its statue of President Garfield in 1886, a mere six years after his assassination by Charles J. Guiteau. Statues of Andrew Jackson of Tennessee and George Washington of Virginia joined the Collection in 1928 and 1934 respectively. Polk is not represented in the collection, though the spot where his desk was located when he served in the House of Representatives is marked by a brass marker on the floor of Statuary Hall.
7. Who was the first woman to be represented in the National Statuary Hall Collection?

Answer: Frances Willard of Illinois

Frances Willard was the founder and first president of the Women's Christian Temperance Union; her statue was placed in the Collection in 1905. She is one of eight women to have statues in the Collection; the others are Mother Joseph of Washington, Esther Hobart Morris of Wyoming, Jeanette Rankin of Montana, Florence R. Sabin of Colorado, Sakakawea of North Dakota, Maria L. Sanford of Minnesota, and Sarah Winnemucca of Nevada.
8. Which of these sculptors created more statues for the National Statuary Hall Collection than any other artist?

Answer: Charles H. Niehaus

Niehaus created eight statues for five states: William Allen and James A. Garfield for Ohio; Zachariah Chandler for Michigan; Henry Clay and Ephraim McDowell for Kentucky; John James Ingalls and George Washington Glick for Kansas; and Oliver Hazard Perry Morton for Indiana. Glick's statue is no longer part of the National Statuary Hall Collection; it was reclaimed by Kansas and replaced with a statue of Dwight Eisenhower.

As for the others, Borglum and de Weldon made three each, and Davidson made two.
9. Recent legislation allows a state to reclaim one of their statues and replace it with a new one. What what the first state to take advantage of this law?

Answer: Kansas

In 2003, Kansas reclaimed its statue of George Washington Glick and replaced it with one of Dwight Eisenhower. Glick's statue now stands in the Kansas State Historical Society in Topeka, Kan. Two other states have chosen to avail themselves of this opportunity: California has decided to replace their statue of the Rev. Thomas Starr King with one of President Ronald Reagan, and Michigan will replace its statue of Sen. Zachariah Chandler with one of President Gerald Ford.
10. In legislation enacted in 2005, Congress was directed to obtain a statue of what civil rights leader for permanent display in the National Statuary Hall?

Answer: Rosa Parks

Rosa Parks has been called the "Mother of the Modern-Day Civil Rights Movement". Her refusal to give up her bus seat to a white passenger and subsequent arrest sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott and led to a United States Supreme Court decision that declared the Alabama and Montgomery laws requiring segregated buses unconstitutional. Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. introduced the legislation calling for a statue of Parks to be placed in the Capitol.
Source: Author JHeaton

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