Hall of Fame for Great Americans
Encyclopedia : H : HA : HAL : Hall of Fame for Great Americans
The Hall of Fame for Great Americans (the original "Hall of Fame"') is a "national shrine" on the grounds of the Bronx Community College of the City University of New York, completed in 1900 as part of the original New York University campus at the site. The building was donated by Helen Gould and formally dedicated on May 30, 1901.
The memorial structure is an open-air colonnade, 630 feet in length with space for 102 bronze sculptures, designed in the neoclassical style by architect Stanford White. Carved in stone on pediments of The Hall of Fame are the words "By wealth of thought, or else by mighty deed, They served mankind in noble character. In worldwide good they live forever more." The base to each sculpture holds a bronze tablet bearing the name of the person commemorated, significant dates, achievements and quotations. Each bronze bust must be made specifically for The Hall of Fame and must not be duplicated within 50 years of its execution.
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. Dr. Henry Mitchell MacCracken, originator of The Hall of Fame and Chancellor of New York University 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."
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.
Classification of honorees
The first 50 names were required to include representatives of a majority of 15 classes:- authors and editors
- business men
- educators
- inventors
- missionaries and explorers
- philanthropists and reformers
- clergymen and theologians;
- scientists
- engineers and architects
- lawyers and judges
- musicians, painters, and sculptors
- physicians and surgeons
- rulers and statesmen
- soldiers and sailors
- distinguished men and women outside of these classes
First group
The first 29 persons to be selected in 1900 were:Later groups
11 persons were added in 1905 and 11 more were added in 1910.The females were: Maria Mitchell, Emma Willard, Mary Lyon, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Frances E. Willard.
Males included: John Paul Jones, Edgar Allan Poe, James Fenimore Cooper, and Andrew Jackson.
External link
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.