RG 002:025, Prudence Crandall Statue Committee

Inventory of Records

Finding aid prepared by VivianLea Solek.

Copyright © 2012 by the Connecticut State Library

Historical Note

In 2000, school children from Bristol, Connecticut visited their State Representative Betty Boukus as part of a field trip to the State Capitol. During the trip they learned that there was no statue in the Capitol building of Prudence Crandall, who was named state heroine in 1995. As a result of their lobbying and fundraising, with leadership from Rep. Boukus, the General Assembly passed House Bill 6568, An Act Providing for a Statue of Prudence Crandall for the State Capitol Building. This act included a provision for a $125,000 appropriation to the Joint Committee on Legislative Management for the project. Rep. Boukus served as chairman of the Prudence Crandall Statue Committee which selected Ms. Gabriel Koren of New York as the sculptor. The Committee completed its work on October 23, 2008 when the statue was dedicated in the North Lobby of the Connecticut State Capitol.

Return to the Table of Contents

Scope and Content

The records are arranged into two series: Administrative Files and Photographs.

Series 1. Administrative Files, 1961-2010, documents the work of the committee. It is further arranged into subseries. Committee Members include committee lists and letters of invitation to prospective members. Correspondence includes letters from school children in support of the project; an undated instruction sheet for school children about how to write letters of support; letters sent with "Pennies for Prudence" donations, the fundraising program used to involve school children in the process; letters from adults regarding contributions to the project; and a letter from "The Amistad Committee, Inc." offering to serve as fiscal agent. The miscellaneous folder includes four different items which include an email from the Connecticut Valley Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America which offered to provide a pro-bono media-relations campaign for the project. Dedication contains an invitation to the dedication, a program, and notes from two of the speakers, Rep. Betty Boukus and Secretary of the State, Susan Bysiewicz. 13 color photographs from the dedication ceremony have been removed to Box 1, Folder 20. Legislative Files include testimony and letters of support for House Bill 6568: An Act Providing for a Statue of Prudence Crandall for the State Capitol Building, and background research on statues of women in other state capitol buildings. Meeting Minutes includes minutes, meeting sign-in sheets and meeting invitations. It also includes handwritten notes that are unlabeled and undated from an unknown author that may be from a meeting or general notes about the project. An audiocassette of an undated meeting has been removed to Box 2. Miscellaneous contains two items relevant to the Committee Chair, Rep. Boukus. There is a 2000 press release from when she was appointed Assistant Majority Leader of the House Democrats and an invitation to her birthday celebration/fundraiser in 2002. Press Files contain newspaper and online clippings, and press releases about the work of the Committee. Research contains information on the statue of Ella Grasso that is in the Capitol, a statue in Texas honoring school children, background research on Prudence Crandall and her school, several research papers on the students who attended her school, and the Teacher's Guide to the Prudence Crandall Museum written by the staff of the Prudence Crandall Museum to provide resource materials for teachers. Sculptor Selection Process includes correspondence and information about establishing the jury, prospective sculptors and the selection process. 9 color photographs of a proposed statue by Randall B. Nelson have been separated from this folder and placed in Box 2, Envelopes 1-9. Selected Sculptor contains correspondence from Ms. Gabriel Koren. 10 color photographs of the clay model of the final statue have been removed to Box 1, Folder 19. Statue Location includes correspondence and meeting minutes regarding the placement of the statue within the Capitol.

Series 2. Photographs, 2001, undated, consists of Ms. Koren's clay model of the final statue, the 2008 dedication ceremony, and a clay model of a proposed statue by Randall B. Nelson.

Return to the Table of Contents

Arrangement

Arranged in two series:

Series 1. Administrative Files, 1961-2010, is further arranged into the following subseries: Committee Members, Dedication, Legislative Files, Meeting Minutes, Miscellaneous, Press Files, Research, Sculptor Selection Process, Selected Sculptor, and Statue Location. Each file is arranged chronologically with undated material at the end of the folder.

Series 2. Photographs, 2001, undated, is arranged by subject matter. The photographs of a clay model by Randall B. Nelson are group chronologically within their subject grouping. Photos submitted in January 2001 are in envelopes 1-3 and in August 2001 are in envelopes 4-9.

Return to the Table of Contents

Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

These records are stored at an off-site facility and therefore may not be available on a same-day basis.

See the Rules and Procedures for Researchers Using Archival Records and Secured Collections policy.

Restrictions on Use

See the Reproduction and Publications of State Library Collections policy.

Return to the Table of Contents

Related Material

RG 005:036, Office of the Governor: Ella Grasso (1975-1980), box 183, "Historical - Prudence Crandall House #47", and box 280, "Prudence Crandall", Connecticut State Library.

Return to the Table of Contents

Index Terms

Organizations:

Persons:

Subjects:

Document Types:

Return to the Table of Contents

Administrative Information

Provenance

The records were transferred to the State Library in 2010.

Processing Information

VivianLea Solek processed the records in September-October, 2012 (Allen Ramsey supervised).

Return to the Table of Contents

Container List