This 1913 relief portrait of Royal Emerson Whitman by Gutzon Borglum decorates Whitman's tombstone in Arlington National Cemetery. Borglum is said to have been a close friend of Whitman.
Colonel Royal Emerson Whitman (May 11, 1833 – February 12, 1913), was an American army officer who served in the Civil War, Reconstruction and the Indian wars, best known for his association with the 1871 Camp Grant massacre. He was the father of noted orthopedic surgeon Royal Whitman. -- Wikipedia
Gutzon Borglum
Royal Emerson Whitman
Col. 30th Maine Inf.
Capt. U. S. Cav.
1833 - 1913
Whitman rose to the rank of Colonel during the Civil War as commander of the 30th Maine Volunteer Infantry. After being mustered out in 1865, he joined the U. S. Cavalry and was a brevetted first lieutenant for his gallantry at the battle of Sabine Cross Roads in April of 1864.
The Camp Grant Massacre occurred on April 30, 1871 when a mob of citizens from Tucson Arizona murdered Pinal and Aravaipa Apaches who were under the protection of the U.S. Army at Camp Grant. Lieutenant Royal Emerson Whitman was in command at Camp Grant at the time.
The Camp Grant Massacre occurred on April 30, 1871 when a mob of citizens from Tucson Arizona murdered Pinal and Aravaipa Apaches who were under the protection of the U.S. Army at Camp Grant. Lieutenant Royal Emerson Whitman was in command at Camp Grant at the time.
Kiddos, Allen. My great, great, GF was close friends with Borglum. Borglum borrowed REW's horse as his model for Borglum's Sheridan statutes, fyi, of Winchester aka Rienzi, seen at Dupont Circle, DC, and Belmont & Sheridan Rd (Chicago) and of course there's that tie in... http://www.sonofthesouth.net/union-generals/sheridan/poem-sheridans-ride.htm
ReplyDeleteBeautiful relief art, a beautiful man who tried to make a difference and set an example for us all. I can not say that there are very many men with such character today.
ReplyDeleteI am a descendant and named after his mother.