Local & Bistate
Abe Lincoln returns to Marshall in statue form
MARSHALL, ILL. — More than 150 years after practicing law in the Clark County, Ill., Courthouse, Abraham Lincoln is back.
On Friday, a statue of a youthful Abe Lincoln, as he would have appeared about 1850, was unveiled on the Clark County Courthouse lawn in Marshall. In the sculpture, Lincoln, without a beard, is walking, wearing an overcoat, looking slightly to his left, holding papers in one hand and a tall hat in the other.
“It looks to me like he just came out of the courthouse,” said Virginia Deisher of Marshall, one of about 100 people braving chilly conditions to watch the bronze sculpture’s unveiling. “I think it’s fabulous.”
The Marshall Main Street project started working toward erecting a Lincoln statue more than a year ago, said Jeannette Tyhurst, president of the organization.
Years before becoming the nation’s 16th president, Lincoln practiced law in the Clark County Courthouse and stayed in the nearby Archer House hotel, she said.
“We have some true history with him here,” Tyhurst said.
Members of the Marshall City Band played music and the Women of Note chorus sang patriotic songs during the unveiling ceremony. The artist who crafted the sculpture, Bill Wolfe of Vigo County, also spoke before the unveiling.
Every sculptor hopes to someday be commissioned to craft a Lincoln sculpture, Wolfe said. “That’s the cream of the crop, right there. … It’s quite an honor.”
The bronze statue stands 6-feet-4-inches, Wolfe said. It is on a black granite base inscribed with the words, “Dedicated to the Residents of Clark County. Gerald and Jean Forsythe, 2009.”
“Anytime anyone thinks about Illinois, they think about Lincoln,” Marshall-native Gerald Forsythe said after the unveiling. “We’re really very pleased for the community.”
Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com.
- Local & Bistate
-
-
Vigo County man dies after being shot at his home
A man has died from multiple gunshot wounds after an early morning shooting west of Prairieton on Robertson Road.
The victim has been identified as 59-year-old Al Kiger.
-
Covered Max Ehrmann statue installed, awaiting official unveiling
Grinning, sculptor Bill Wolfe briefly uncovered his latest work — a bronze statue of poet Max Ehrmann. “Max just got to see Terre Haute for the first time,” Wolfe said.
-
F136 fighter engine wins House vote
Terre Haute won a small victory in Washington on Tuesday when a congressional subcommittee voted to keep funding a military jet engine partially made by a local company.
-
Tax-exempt status at risk for Valley groups
Small nonprofit organizations throughout the Wabash Valley now risk losing their tax-exempt status if they fail to make an electronic filing by Oct. 15, under a one-time relief program from the Internal Revenue Service.
-
Brazil woman jailed after allegedly using brick as weapon
A Brazil woman has been arrested for allegedly hitting another woman in the head with a brick in a dispute over a girlfriend.
-
Red Cross launches fundraising drive
With an extremely active hurricane season looming, an oil spill in the Gulf that could make matters even worse, and local disasters such as floods, wind storms and home fires, the American Red Cross Wabash Valley Chapter has launched a new disaster relief fundraising drive.
-
June home invasion suspect caught
Police have arrested one of the two remaining suspects in an alleged attempted home invasion in late June in southern Vigo County.
-
Vigo County to offer employee buyouts
The Vigo County Council voted 6-1 on Tuesday to offer a buyout package to more than a dozen county employees in order to reduce the county’s work force and save money.
-
City working to start parks foundation
Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett hopes the establishment of a tax-deductible municipal park foundation will enable people to donate or bequeath money to support improvement projects in city parks and also cover maintenance expenses.
-
Infant’s cause of death determined
Asphyxiation secondary to co-sleeping has been listed as the cause of death for a 6-week-old baby who died July 15 in West Terre Haute.
- More Local & Bistate Headlines
-
