Boy Scout Commemorative Tribute
Monument to the Boy Scouts of America on The Ellipse.
In 1964, sculptor Donald De Lue created this public artwork for Washington, D.C. Situated on the Ellipse in President’s Park near the White House, it honors the Boy Scouts of America. Also called the Boy Scout Memorial or Fountain, the monument and fountain are cared for by the National Park Service.
Quick Facts
- Artist
- Donald De Lue
- Height
- 168
- Length imperial
- 104
- City
- Washington, D.C., United States
- Owner
- National Park Service
Facts from the source article.
Description
The sculpture features three bronze figures: a Boy Scout in the center, stepping forward and carrying a walking stick in his left hand. Flanking him are two larger allegorical figures of a man and a woman, representing American Manhood and Womanhood and the ideals they will pass onto the youth. To the Scout's right, the male figure is nearly nude, carrying a bundle of leaves and drapery in his left arm, with part of the drapery blowing across his middle as he strides forward on his right leg.
To the Scout's left, the female figure holds a torch with a gold-colored flame in her left hand; her left hand extends slightly with palm facing upward, and she strides forward on her right leg. The three figures are mounted on a hexagonal base measuring 62 by 92 by 98 inches. In front of the sculpture is a circular pool of water. A panel on the base is inscribed with the Scout Oath.
The rim of the pool bears an inscription noting the memorial was authorized by Congress in recognition of the fiftieth anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America.
Information
The memorial's three figures carry layered meanings. The National Park Service explains that the Boy Scout embodies the hopes of every Scout, past, present, and future, representing physical, mental, and moral strength, patriotism, civic duty, loyalty, honor, and courage. He holds a helmet, an emblem of traditional masculine dress. The female figure stands for enlightenment, love of God and humanity, justice, freedom, and democracy, and she carries the eternal flame of God's Holy Spirit.
Modern Art Foundry in New York cast the sculpture. In 1959, during Scouting's 50th anniversary, Senator Lyndon B. Johnson proposed the memorial. Scouts across the country raised the money by collecting dimes, so no public funds were used. Their names appear on scrolls sealed inside the monument's base.
The sculpture stands where the first National Scout Jamboree took place in 1937. Dedicated on November 7, 1964, Associate Supreme Court Justice Tom C. Clark accepted it, marking his own 50th anniversary as an Eagle Scout.
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