Philip Reed (sculptor)
After his emancipation, he assisted Mills in installing the Statue of Freedom atop the United States Capitol, which was completed on December 2, 1863.
In 1928, Tennessee Representative Finis J. Garrett presented a paper honoring Reed for his "faithful service and genius", and describing the key role he had played in casting the statue of Freedom, that is now part of the Congressional Record.
[1][6] Reed died on February 6, 1892, and after having been moved twice, his remains were interred at National Harmony Memorial Park in Landover, Maryland, in 1960.
[1][b] A memorial plaque honoring Philip Reed[a] was unveiled on April 16, 2014—the 152nd anniversary of Emancipation in Washington, D.C. at the cemetery.
It reads, Philip Reed The slave who built the Statue of Freedom atop the U.S. Capitol died a free man on February 6, 1892 and is buried here at National Harmony Memorial Park.The Clark Mills Studio, #51 Broad Street, in Charleston, South Carolina.
After receiving commissions in Washington, D.C., Mills established a residence and studio on Bladensburg Road, NE in the District of Columbia in 1860.
[2][15][16] Commissioned in 1855, the initial full-size plaster model of Freedom was completed by American sculptor Crawford in his studio in Rome, Italy.
[2] The fragile full-scale plaster model needed to be separated again into its five main sections to move it from the old House Chamber to Mills' foundry for casting.
[2][17] According to Mills' son Fisk, the Italian artisan refused to dismantle it until he got a major raise and a long-term contract.
Reed was able to find the seams by the ingenious use of an iron ring attached to the head of the figure and a block and tackle.
On December 2, 1863, the "final piece of the iconic Statue of Freedom" was installed "atop the new Capitol Dome" amid great celebration and a 35-gun salute.
[19] The 38th Congress (1863–1865) convened five days after Freedom had been installed, to "face and settle the most important questions of the century", and "passed the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which—when adopted by the states—abolished slavery and involuntary servitude.
[19] In 1863, with the Statue of Freedom newly installed on the Capital, a newspaper correspondent wrote, The black master-builder lifted the ponderous uncouth masses and bolted them together, joint by joint, piece by piece, till they blended into the majestic 'Freedom'.... Was there a prophecy in that moment when the slave became the artist and with rare poetic justice, reconstructed the beautiful symbol of freedom for America?
[4] During the 70th United States Congress in 1928, Tennessee Representative, Finis J. Garrett, read a paper and poem by William A. Cox[1][20]: 1199–1200 ... the facts are that [Freedom's] successful taking apart and handling in parts as a model was due to the faithful service and genius of an intelligent negro in Washington named Philip Reed, a mulatto slave owned by Mr. Clark Mill, and that much credit is due him for his faithful and intelligent services rendered in modeling and casting America's superb Statue of Freedom, which kisses the first rays of the aurora of the rising sun as they appear upon the apex of the Capitol's wonderful dome.The Architect of the Capitol described Reed as the "single best known enslaved person associated with the Capitol’s construction history".
