Statue_of_Nathan_Hale_(Washington,_D.C.)
Statue of Nathan Hale (Washington, D.C.)
Statue by Bela Pratt
Captain Nathan Hale is a bronze statue of Nathan Hale (1755-1776), a schoolteacher from Connecticut, who enlisted in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He was stationed in Boston, but was later transferred to the New York City area. While in New York, Hale acted as a spy against the Kingdom of Great Britain's army. He posed as a teacher and was able to cross enemy lines to obtain military information. He left the area and before he could return home, his cousin, a Loyalist, informed the British about what Hale had done. He was captured and sentenced to death, with the hanging occurring the following day. While Hale was on the gallows, he gave a speech which ended with his famous quote: "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."
The statue of Hale that stands in front of the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building, near the northwest corner of 13th Street and Constitution Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., was originally created in 1914 for Yale University, Hale's alma mater. The statue is a life-sized figure based on a design by sculptor Bela Lyon Pratt, with assistance from architect Douglas Orr and Roman Bronze Works. The cast for the duplicate statue was made in 1930. There are several of these statues located throughout the U.S. The cast of the statue in Washington, D.C., which was donated by attorney George Dudley Seymour, is bronze and the pedestal is granite. It was dedicated in April 1948.
The statue is one of 14 American Revolution statues in Washington, D.C., that were collectively listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1978. The statue is also a contributing property to the Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site, also listed on the NRHP, and the Federal Triangle Historic District, listed on the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites.