Calder Statues

Calder Statues. , These larger-than-life statues represent six important figures in early American Presbyterianism. Commissioned for placement on the Witherspoon Building at Walnut and Juniper Streets, they were removed from that site in 1961 and installed here in 1967., Sculptor Alexander Stirling Calder (1870 - 1945) also created Logan Square's Swann Memorial Fountain and Shakespeare Memorial. He was the son of Alexander Milne Calder, who designed hundreds of sculptures at City Hall, and the father of Alexander "Sandy" Calder, famous for his mobiles. These statues are his only known works in cast terra cotta., [Captions:] , Francis Makemie , 1658 - 1708 , A native of Ireland, Makemie founded churches in Maryland and Virginia and served as moderator of America's first Presbytery. When arrested in colonial New York for preaching without a licence, he successfully invoked Britain's Toleration Act to defend the principle of religious freedom., John Witherspoon , 1723 - 1794 , The Scottish-born Witherspoon came to America to head the college that became Princeton University. A church leader, he was the only active clergyman to sign the Declaration of Independence., John McMillan , 1752 - 1833 , As a frontier preacher, McMillan founded churches and schools in western Pennsylvania. His Log School in Canonsburg was one of the first educational institutions west of the Alleghenies. He also helped establish the University of Pittsburgh and Washington and Jefferson College., Samuel Davies , 1723 - 1761 , A leading evangelist in the Great Awakening, Davies stressed religious freedom and education for all, including the enslaved. Besides instructing and providing books for hundreds of slaves, he became one of the first American-born composers of hymns., James Caldwell , 1734 - 1781 , Known as the "Fighting parson," Caldwell served in the Revolutionary War. When troops ran out of gun wadding at the Battle of Springfield, he passed out books of Isaac Watts' hymns, urging men to "Give 'em Watts.", Marcus Whitman , 1802 - 1847 , Whitman was a physician and his wife, Narcissa, a teacher. Together they set up a mission near modern-day Walla Walla, Washington, to offer medical care and schooling to the Cayuse tribe. Their settlement became an important station on the Oregon Trail.