Historical statues that have come down: A list

Some have been vandalized and removed, others were taken down out of concern that they represent racism, injustice

Rio Arriba County workers remove the bronze statue of Spanish conquerer Juan de Oate from its pedestal in front of a cultural center in Alcalde, N.M., Monday, June 15, 2020. Crowds of people for and against the removal lined Highway 68 near of the center. (Eddie Moore/The Albuquerque Journal via AP) (Eddie Moore)

Statues that have stood for years -- and in some cases, decades -- have been top of mind all across the country since mid-2020, as protests followed the deaths of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks.

Some statues were vandalized, while others depicting Confederate leaders or Christopher Columbus were outright removed out of concern that they represented racism and injustice.

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Here is a list of notable statues that have come down, according to The Hill.


Albany, N.Y. - The statue of Maj. Gen. Philip Schuyler in front of City Hall was ordered to be removed by Mayor Kathy Sheehan, who noted Schuyler was reportedly the largest slave owner in Albany.

Albuquerque, N.M. - The city of Albuquerque removed the statue of conquistador Juan de Onate.

Alexandria, Va. - “Appomattox,” a 131-year-old Confederate statue depicting a southern-facing Civil War soldier, was removed from an intersection June 2, 2020.

Birmingham, Ala. - A statue of Confederate officer Charles Linn was taken down by protestors on June 2, 2020. In addition, Mayor Randal Woofin agreed to remove an obelisk formerly known as the Confederate Sailors and Soldiers Monument, according to NPR.

Boston - A statue of Christopher Columbus was removed after being beheaded by protestors June 10, 2020.

Dallas - A Texas Ranger statue that went by the name “One Riot, One Ranger,” was removed from Love Field Airport on June 11, 2020.

Dearborn, Mich. - A statue of late Mayor Orville Hubbard was removed June 5, 2020 due to Hubbard’s alleged racist views.

Indianapolis, Ind. - The city began removing a monument June 8, 2020 that memorialized Confederate prisoners of war.

Jacksonville, Fla. - A statue and plaque honoring fallen Confederate soldiers was removed from Hemming Park on June 9, 2020. The statue had been at the park since 1898.

Louisville, Ky. - A statue of John Breckenridge Castleman, a Confederate officer, was removed June 8, 2020.

Mobile, Ala. - A statue depicting Confederate Admiral Raphael Semmes was removed June 5, 2020.

Montgomery, Ala. - A statue of Robert E. Lee was torn down by protesters in early June, 2020.

Nashville, Tenn. - A statue of politician Edward Carmack, a known critic of Tennessee civil rights journalist Ida B. Wells, was taken down May 30, 2020 outside the state Capitol.

New York City - A seven-foot tall statue of Thomas Jefferson was moved from City Hall, where it was since 1833, to the New York Historical Society in October. The statue was removed after pleas that Jefferson enslaved more than 600 people. In June, a statue of Theodore Roosevelt was moved from the American Museum of Natural History. The statue drew controversy for featuring Roosevelt riding a horse while a Black man and a Native American man flanked him below on each side.

Philadelphia - The statue of former Mayor Frank Rizzo was removed June 2, 2020. Rizzo allegedly mistreated members of the Black and LGBT communities during his two terms in the 1970s.

Richmond, Va. - Three statues -- those of Confederate Gen. Williams Carter Wickham, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and Christopher Columbus -- were torn down over a five-day span in June, 2020. The statue of Columbus was thrown into a lake. In September, a 21-foot tall bronze statue of Robert E. Lee was taken down.

Saint Paul, Minn. - A statue of Christopher Columbus was taken down by protesters outside of the state Capitol.

Sacramento, Calif. - A statue honoring a colonizer who laid claim to the land where the discovery of shiny flakes of gold sparked the California Gold Rush was removed June 15, 2020, outside a hospital bearing his name. A work crew lifted the statue of John Sutter -- a 19th century man who enslaved Native Americans -- off its pedestal in one of the latest instances of a historical figure being removed from public display.

This story was first published in 2021. It has since been updated.


About the Author:

Keith is a member of Graham Media Group's Digital Content Team, which produces content for all the company's news websites.