Here stands Daniel Webster, gazing into the distance. What thoughts occupy the mind of this American lawyer and statesman? This is the Daniel Webster Statue. It stands along the West Drive near 72nd Street.
Daniel Webster served nearly 40 years as a Representative, Senator, and Secretary of State. His speeches on the Constitution taught Americans their history. This was important in an era before textbooks.
Gordon W. Burnham, a manufacturing magnate, donated this monument to Central Park. Burnham commissioned Thomas Ball, an American sculptor, to create it. Ball based it on a statuette popular in American homes.
The statue’s placement was controversial. Burnham wanted Daniel Webster on the Mall. That area was designated for monuments. But, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, Park designers, disagreed. They felt it would block views. It would compete with the trees. The intersection of West Drive and 72nd Street was chosen instead.
Interestingly, this wasn’t Burnham’s first gift to the Park. His first was the artwork Eagles and Prey. Most of the Park’s monuments honor cultural figures like writers. Daniel Webster stands out as a statesman. Other American statesmen honored here include Alexander Hamilton and Frederick Douglass.
The New York Times called Gordon W. Burnham one of the city’s most widely known millionaires. In 1874, he offered a bronze statue of Daniel Webster to the Department of Public Parks. He wanted it placed at the lower entrance to the mall. He hoped it would be completed by July 4, 1876, for the Centennial of American Independence. The New York Herald called it a fitting memorial to the Great Statesman.
The Parks Commissioners initially refused Burnham’s offer. This shocked New Yorkers. One person criticized them for filling the park with monuments to foreigners. The statue would sit in Central Park, but not on the Mall.
Delays pushed the unveiling to November 25, 1876. Thousands of spectators attended. The statue is 14 feet tall. It stands on a 20-foot pedestal. The monument weighs over 125 tons. It cost over $30,000. The pedestal is made of Quincy granite. One block weighs thirty-three tons.
Bronze letters on the pedestal read: Liberty and Union, Now and Forever, One and Inseparable, Daniel Webster. Burnham celebrated with a lavish reception. Guests included governors, socialites, and industrialists. A month later, the City Council honored Burnham with a testimonial.
Critical opinion of the Daniel Webster Statue changed over time. In 1890, one critic called the base ugly. In 1912, dynamite was found near the statue. In 1943, Commissioner Robert Moses called it one of the worst statues in the city. He criticized its cutaway coat and unpressed pants.
The Daniel Webster Statue was conserved in 1963. But, the result offended some. In 1987, a journalist described it as resembling a wooden Indian.
In 2020, protesters targeted the statue. They were angered by Webster’s support for the Compromise of 1850. This included the Fugitive Slave Act. The base was defaced with graffiti. Despite its rocky reputation, the Daniel Webster Statue still stands. It is often overlooked by park visitors. It stands defiantly.