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Pierre Menard
 The 8 ft. statue of Pierre Menard, Illinois' second Lt. Governor,
trading with a Native American was placed on the Capitol lawn on May 28,
1886 and was dedicated on January 10, 1888. It was moved to its
present location in 1918 to make room for the Douglas statue.
Sculptor: John H. Mahoney
1886 |
Abraham Lincoln
 The
10 ft. 6 in. statue of Abraham Lincoln was dedicated on October 5, 1918, the
centennial of the first meeting of the Illinois General Assembly. This
statue and the statue of Stephen A. Douglas were funded by the same 1913
appropriation.
Sculptor: Andrew O'Connor
1918 |
Stephen A. Douglas
 This
statue of the "Little Giant" was dedicated on October 5, 1918, the same date
as the Lincoln statue. When it was dedicated, the Douglas statue was
placed to the north of the Lincoln statue where the Menard statue had been.
In 1935 the Douglas statue was moved to its present location, directly in
front of the east steps of the Capitol.
Sculptor: Gilbert P. Riswold
1918 |
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Richard Yates
 The
Richard Yates statue was dedicated on October 16, 1923 in a joint ceremony
along with the Palmer statue. Yates was an Illinois Governor and a
Senator. He was known as the "wounded soldier's friend" and was
popular among Civil War veterans.
Sculptor: Albin Polasek
1921 |
John M. Palmer
 John
M. Palmer was a general in the Civil War, military governor of Kentucky, and
was elected Governor of Illinois in 1868. He was later elected to the
U.S. Senate. The statue was dedicated on October 16, 1923.
Sculptor: Leonard Crunelle
1923 |
Sundial
 The
sundial was donated by the Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War and
dedicated to the Grand Army of the Republic on September 8, 1940. |
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The Coal Miner
 State
Representative Paul Powell introduced a bill to create a monument to honor
Illinois coal miners at the urging of miner, poet and artist Vachel Davis.
The statue was modeled after Davis' famous painting and dedicated on
October 16, 1964.
Sculptor: John Szaton
1964 |
Everett
McKinley Dirksen
 Everett
Dirksen served Illinois for 34 years as a Congressman and U.S. Senator.
The elephant, donkey, and oil can at his feet represent his skills at
fostering cooperation between Republicans and Democrats to enact important
legislation. The statue was dedicated on September 16, 1976.
Sculptor: Carl Tolpo
1975 |
Liberty Bell
Replica
 54
replicas of the Liberty Bell were cast in France in 1950 to promote the sale
of U.S. Savings Bonds. They were distributed to the states by the
U. S. Treasury Department. This bell was abandoned at the State
Fairgrounds for 25 years. It was taken out of storage and became
part of a bicentennial exhibit that traveled the state in 1976. It was
moved to the Capitol grounds on April 28, 1977. |
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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
 The
statue of Dr. King was unveiled on January 14, 1988 and displayed in the
Capitol rotunda until it was moved outside the Illinois State Museum in
1989. In 1993 the statue was moved to its present location at "Freedom
Corner" across 2nd Street from the Lincoln statue. Dr. King is the
only non-Illinoisan to be honored with a statue.
Sculptor: Geraldine McCullough
1988 |
Illinois Police Officers
Memorial
 This
memorial was dedicated on October 29, 1990 to honor police officers killed
in the line of duty. Each May a ceremony is held to honor officers
recently killed performing their duties. Their names are added to the
original 643 engraved on the surrounding granite slates.
Sculptor: Keith Knoblock
1990 |
Illinois Workers Memorial
 The
Workers Memorial was paid for by donations from union members and "is
dedicated to the memory of thousands of Illinois workers killed and injured
on the job." The statue was dedicated on April 28, 1992 with national
AFL-CIO president Lane Kirkland giving the keynote speech.
Sculptor: Peter Fagan
1992 |
