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This bust of George Washington, elected to the Hall of Fame for Great Americans in 1900, executed by an unknown sculptor, is a copy of a piece by Jean-Antoine Houdon. George Washington (1732-1799) was the first President of the United States from 1789–1797 after serving as Commander-in-Chief and leading the Continental Army to victory over the Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War. As president, he established many of the customs and usages of the new government's executive department. His unilateral Proclamation of Neutrality of 1793 provided a basis for avoiding any involvement in foreign conflicts. He supported plans to build a strong central government by funding the national debt, implementing an effective tax system, and creating a national bank.
The Hall of Fame for Great Americans--the original "Hall of Fame", was conceived of by Dr. Henry Mitchell MacCracken, Chancellor of New York University from 1891 to 1910. It was designed as part of the school's undergraduate campus in University Heights in the Bronx, which is today the campus of Bronx Community College of The City University of New York. The Hall of Fame stands on the heights occupied by the British army in its successful attack upon Fort Washington in the autumn of 1776. MacCracken, once said "Lost to the invaders of 1776, this summit is now retaken by the goodly troop of 'Great Americans', General Washington their leader. They enter into possession of these Heights and are destined to hold them, we trust, forever."
The memorial structure is a sweeping open-air colonnade, 630 feet in length, designed in neoclassical style by the Stanford White. Financed by a gift from Mrs. Finley J. Shepard (Helen Gould), the Hall of Fame was formally dedicated on May 30, 1901. The Colonnade was designed with niches to accommodate 102 sculptured works and currently houses the busts and commemorative plaques of 98 of the 102 honorees elected since 1900. Each bronze bust, executed by a distinguished American sculptor, must be made specifically for The Hall of Fame and must not be duplicated within 50 years of its execution. To be eligible for nomination, a person must have been a native born or naturalized citizen of the United States, must have been dead for 25 years and must have made a major contribution to the economic, political, or cultural life of the nation. Of the 17 categories in The Hall of Fame, Authors is the largest, with Statesmen following closely.
The complex of three buildings adjoining the Colonnade--Gould Memorial Library, the Hall of Languages, and Cornelius Baker Hall of Philosophy--were also designed by Stanford White and bear a close conceptual relationship to the Colonnade, with the library as the central focus.
National Register #79001567
A Chinese mass-produced display hull is used as the master for the duplicate ($4 from The Center for Wooden Boats annual warehouse sale). A second master will be made for hollowing out the inside. This trial effort utilized scrap 2"x6" Hemlock, complete with nail holes. Apatong scraps are used for the keel's foot.