Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial (Bristol, Pennsylvania)

Photograph of the Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial in Bristol, Pennsylvania, along the Delaware River. A statue of Harriet Tubman on a plinth around surrounded by eight short columns.

Photograph of the Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial in Bristol, Pennsylvania, along the Delaware River, with Tubman on a black granite plinth.

Photograph of the Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial in Bristol, Pennsylvania, along the Delaware River, with a focus on Tubman pointing to the North.

Photograph of the back view of the Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial in Bristol, Pennsylvania, along the Delaware River.

Photograph of the Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial in Bristol, Pennsylvania, along the Delaware River, with a detail of Tubman's head.

Photograph of Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial in Bristol, Pennsylvania, along the Delaware River with a detail Tubman and a pistol tucked into the belt at her waist.

Photograph of Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial in Bristol, Pennsylvania, with a bronze plaque set into the granite plinth with information on Harriet Ross Tubman.

Dublin Core

Title

Harriet Ross Tubman Memorial (Bristol, Pennsylvania)

Subject

Subject (Topic)
Antislavery movements--United States
Freedom
Pennsylvania--Bristol
Public art
Public sculpture
Underground Railroad

Subject (Name)
Tubman, Harriet, 1822-1913

Subject (Object Type)
Commemorative sculpture

Description

The single bronze figure of Harriet Tubman stands atop a black granite plinth. Tubman wears a coat, haversack slung over her right shoulder, and a pistol at her waist. Tubman's right arm is raised to the sky as she points her right hand toward the North Star. The statue of Tubman sits at the center of eleven black granite columns inscribed with edifying phrases including: Hope is Another Form of Freedom; We Choose Inclusion Not Exclusion; Our Town is America the Beautiful; We Stand Together; Liberty and Justice For All; Move Forward; Amalgamate the Community; Freedom Will Prevail; Unity is the Way.

Signed by the artist: James L. Gafgen, 2005. Foundry stamp: Art Research Enterprises: The Art Foundry.

Creator

Gafgen, James L., 1939-2019

Source

Photographs by Renée Ater

Date

June 24, 2006

Contributor

William H. Smith (Design); Sydney L. Taylor and the African-American Historical and Cultural Society of Bucks County; The Bucks County Committee For Interracial Harmony; State of Pennsylvania; Mayor and Council of the Borough of Bristol.

Rights

Bristol Township, 2501 Bath Road, Bristol, Pennsylvania, 19007, United States

Format

JPEG

Language

English

Type

Visual Arts-Sculpture

Coverage

Bristol Lions Park, 150 Basin Park, Bristol, Pennsylvania, 19007, United States

Date Created

Signed: 2006

Has Part

Inscription on base of sculpture:
Harriet Ross Tubman

Inscription on bronze plaque:
Harriet Ross Tubman. Abolitionist-American Hero. Circa 1820-1913. Harriet Tubman escaped from slavery in 1849. She fled to Philadelphia where, as a conductor on the Underground Railroad, she made 19 sorties into the South, liberating over 300 slaves. Ms. Tubman also served as a spy and nurse for the Union Army during the Civil War. Harriet Tubman—Authentic American Hero

Ten granite columns with inscriptions (clockwise from base of sculpture):
Hope is Another Form of Freedom; We Choose Inclusion Not Exclusion; Our Town is America the Beautiful; We Stand Together; Liberty and Justice For All; Move Forward; Amalgamate the Community; Freedom Will Prevail; Unity is the Way.

Ten stone markers:
Names of old African American families in Bristol

References

Monument and Myth: Commemorating Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad

Extent

78 in. (198.12 cm)

Medium

Bronze; Green granite

Bibliographic Citation

Waymarking.com. “Harriet Tubman-Lions Park-Bristol, PA.” Statues of Historic Figures. Accessed, March 21, 2018. http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM3JK9_Harriet_Tubman_Lions_Park_Bristol_PA.

Rights Holder

Renée Ater

Still Image Item Type Metadata

Original Format

Sculpture

Physical Dimensions