American sculptor
Charles Henry Niehaus
(January 24, 1855 ? June 19, 1935) was an American sculptor.
Early life and education
[
edit
]
Niehaus was born in
Cincinnati
,
Ohio
, to German parents.
[1]
He began working as a marble and wood carver, and then gained entrance to the
McMicken School of Design
in Cincinnati. He studied at the
Royal Academy
in Munich, Germany (1877?1881). The effect of the German study was that he retained much of the Neo-Classical flavor in his art while most other sculptors of his generation were drawn towards Beaux-Arts realism.
Career
[
edit
]
He returned to America in 1881. By virtue of being a native Ohioan, he was commissioned to sculpt two statues of the recently assassinated President
James Garfield
;
one for Cincinnati
(Garfield's home city), and
the other, in another pose
, for the
National Statuary Hall Collection
at the
United States Capitol
. He moved to
Rome
, Italy, where he worked on the commissions, and made a study of ancient sculpture. He modeled three major male nudes during his years in Rome, including
The Scraper
(1883) and
Caestus
(1883-1885). He returned to New York City in 1885, and opened a studio.
[2]
In 1887, he created a
statue
of Ohioan
William Allen
, also for Statuary Hall. In later years, he was to place statues of
Oliver P. Morton
of Indiana (1900),
John J. Ingalls
of Kansas (1905),
Zachariah Chandler
of Michigan (1913),
George W. Glick
of Kansas (1914),
Ephraim McDowell
of Kentucky (1929), and
Henry Clay
of Kentucky (1929) in the collection. His work was also part of the
sculpture event
in the
art competition
at the
1932 Summer Olympics
.
[3]
Monuments by Niehaus can be found in many American cities. Several of the works authored by him are
equestrian statues
. As was the case with other sculptors of his day he also fashioned a fair amount of architectural sculpture.
In 1900 Niehaus married noted horticulturalist Regina Armstrong and moved to
New Rochelle, New York
.
[4]
A resident of
Cliffside Park, New Jersey
, Niehaus died at his home there on June 19, 1935.
[5]
Selected works
[
edit
]
- James A. Garfield
,
Piatt Park
, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1882-1887
- The Scraper
(
Athlete Using a
Strigil
),
Brookgreen Gardens
, Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, 1883
[6]
- Caestus
,
Metropolitan Museum of Art
, New York City, 1883-1885
[7]
- Bas-relief panel of
Surrender of the Hessians
,
Trenton Battle Monument
, Trenton, New Jersey, 1891?1893
William Rudolf O'Donovan
sculpted the colossal
George Washington
statue atop the monument, and statues of two Continental soldiers flanking the entrance.
Thomas Eakins
modeled two other bas-relief panels.
- Moses
, Main Reading Room,
Library of Congress
, Washington, D.C., 1894
[8]
- Edward Gibbon
, Main Reading Room,
Library of Congress
, Washington, D.C., 1894
[9]
- Samuel Hahnemann Monument
,
Scott Circle
, Washington, D.C., 1896-1900
- Hackley Park
, Muskegon, Michigan:
- Bust of Robert Blum
,
Cincinnati Art Museum
, Cincinnati, Ohio, ca. 1900
- The Driller
,
Edwin Drake
Memorial, Woodlawn Cemetery, Titusville, Pennsylvania, 1901
- Equestrian Statue of General Forrest
,
Nathan Bedford Forrest
Grave, Forrest Park,
Memphis, Tennessee
, 1901-1905
- Apotheosis of St. Louis
,
Forest Park
, St. Louis, Missouri, 1906
- William McKinley
,
McKinley Memorial Mausoleum
, Canton, Ohio, 1907. Niehaus also modeled the lunette bas-relief over the entrance.
- Benjamin Harrison
,
Indiana World War Memorial Plaza
, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1908.
- James W. Beardsley
, Beardsley Park, Bridgeport, Connecticut, 1909
[13]
- John Paul Jones
,
John Paul Jones Memorial
,
West Potomac Park
, Washington, D.C., 1912. Niehaus's plaster original is at the
United States Naval Academy
, Annapolis, Maryland.
- Oliver Hazard Perry
(1915?16),
Front Park
, Buffalo, New York.
[14]
[15]
- Orpheus with the Awkward Foot
(
Francis Scott Key
Monument),
Fort McHenry National Monument
, Baltimore, Maryland, 1916-1922.
[16]
- Planting the Standard of Democracy in Honor of Newark's Soldiers
, World War I Memorial,
Lincoln Park
, Newark, New Jersey, 1923.
- Hackensack War Monument, The Green,
Bergen County Court House
, Hackensack, New Jersey, 1924.
[17]
- At least 30
Civil War
monuments and several
World War I
memorials.
[
citation needed
]
United States Capitol
[
edit
]
Niehaus had eight statues in the
National Statuary Hall Collection
at the
United States Capitol
in Washington, D.C., a record for a sculptor. However, in 2003, Kansas replaced his
statue of George Washington Glick
with one of
Dwight D. Eisenhower
, in 2011, Michigan replaced his statue of
Zachariah Chandler
with one of
Gerald R. Ford
, in 2016, Ohio replaced his statue of
William Allen
with one of
Thomas Edison
, and, in 2022, Kansas replaced his statue of
John James Ingalls
with one of
Amelia Earhart
. His remaining four statues are still more than any other sculptor has in the Hall.
[18]
There are also two busts by Niehaus in other collections:
Architectural sculpture
[
edit
]
- Connecticut State Capitol
, Hartford, Connecticut:
- Astor Memorial Doors
(south doors),
Trinity Church
, New York City, 1895
- Two
tympana
, Thomas Jefferson Building,
Library of Congress
, Washington, D.C., ca. 1896
- Pedimental sculpture
of
The Triumph of Law
,
Appellate Court House
, New York City, 1896?1900
- Pedimental sculpture,
Kentucky State Capitol
, Frankfort, Kentucky, 1907
Gallery
[
edit
]
-
James A. Garfield
(1882?87),
Piatt Park
, Cincinnati, Ohio
-
-
-
Abraham Lincoln Monument (1900), Hackley Park, Muskegon, Michigan
-
Bust of Robert Blum
(ca. 1900),
Cincinnati Art Museum
, Cincinnati, Ohio
-
Nathan Bedford Forrest
(1901?1905), Forrest Park, Memphis, Tennessee
-
William McKinley
(1907),
McKinley Memorial Mausoleum
, Canton, Ohio
-
James W. Beardsley
(1909), Beardsley Park, Bridgeport, Connecticut
-
John Paul Jones
(1912),
John Paul Jones Memorial
, Washington, D.C.
-
Niehaus with his model for
Orpheus
, (Francis Scott Key Monument) (1916?1922), Baltimore, Maryland
-
World War I Monument (1923),
Lincoln Park
, Newark, New Jersey
-
Planting the Standard of Democracy
(1923), Lincoln Park,
Newark
, New Jersey
-
Ephraim McDowell
(1929),
United States Capitol
, Washington, D.C.
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
Clark, S. J. (1912).
Cincinnati, the Queen City, 1788-1912, Volume 2
. The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company. p. 19
. Retrieved
2013-05-20
.
- ^
1911
Encyclopædia Britannica
.
- ^
"Charles Henry Niehaus"
.
Olympedia
. Retrieved
8 August
2020
.
- ^
"Regina Armstrong (NY Times & Standard Star articles provided)"
. Home.comcast.net. Archived from
the original
on 2014-02-02
. Retrieved
2014-08-10
.
- ^
Staff.
"CHARLES H. NIEHAUS, NOTED SCULPTOR, DIES; Designed the Francis Scott Key Memorial in Baltimore and Many Washington Statues."
,
The New York Times
, June 20, 1935. Accessed September 10, 2017. "CLIFFSIDE PARK, N. J. - Charles Henry Niehaus, noted sculptor of the Francis Scott Key Memorial in Baltimore and the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial at Newark, N. J., died 8 o'clock tonight at his home, 40 Grant Avenue. He was 80 years old."
- ^
The Scraper
Archived
2014-08-12 at the
Wayback Machine
from SIRIS.
- ^
Caestus
from Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- ^
Moses
Archived
2012-10-08 at the
Wayback Machine
from Library of Congress.
- ^
Edward Gibbon
from Library of Congress.
- ^
Buffalo Lincoln
from Buffalo History Museum.
- ^
Farragut Monument
Archived
2014-08-02 at the
Wayback Machine
from SIRIS.
- ^
McKinley Monument
Archived
2014-08-02 at the
Wayback Machine
from SIRIS.
- ^
Beardsley statue
from CT Monuments.
- ^
Commodore Perry
from SIRIS.
- ^
"Commodore Perry"
. Novan.com. Archived from
the original
on 2015-02-20
. Retrieved
2014-08-10
.
- ^
Special to The New York Times. (1916-05-18).
"Key Memorial Approved, NY Times"
(PDF)
.
New York Times
. Retrieved
2014-08-10
.
- ^
Hackensack War Monument
Archived
2014-08-02 at the
Wayback Machine
from SIRIS.
- ^
National Statuary Hall Collection
from Architect of the Capitol.
- ^
Garfield bust
from U.S. Senate
- ^
Tompkins bust
from U.S. Senate
References
[
edit
]
- Bzdak, Meredith Arms, photographs by Douglas Peterson,
Public Sculpture in New Jersey: Monuments to Collective identity
,
Rutgers University Press
, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1999
- Chisholm, Hugh
, ed. (1911).
"Niehaus, Charles Henry"
.
Encyclopædia Britannica
. Vol. 19 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 670.
- Connecticut State Capitol Statuary
, The League of Women Voters of Connenticut: Education Fund
- Hardin Campen, Richard N.,
Outdoor Sculpture in Ohio: A Comprehensive Overview of Outdoor Sculpture in Ohio, Mid-Nineteenth Century to the Present
, West Summit Press, Chagrin Falls, Ohio, 1980
- Kvaran, Einar Einarsson,
Architectural Sculpture of America
, unpublished manuscript
- Opitz, Glenn B, Editor,
Mantle Fielding's Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers
, Apollo Book, Poughkeepsie NY, 1986
- Proske, Beatrice Gilman,
Brookgreen Gardens Sculpture
, Brookgreen Gardens, South Carolina, 1968
External links
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