Lot Flannery (1836–December 19, 1922) was an Irish-American sculptor from

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, best known for his work in 1868 on the ''

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

'' statue located outside the

District of Columbia City Hall District of Columbia City Hall, also known as Old City Hall and the District of Columbia Courthouse, is a historic building at Judiciary Square in downtown Washington, D.C. facing Indiana Avenue. Originally built for the offices of the governmen ...

and the nation's oldest extant memorial to the assassinated president.

Biography

Flannery was born in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, but moved to the United States as a child. He displayed a talent for art and began studying the field in Washington, D.C. He focused his work on sculpture and traveled to Europe to further his studies. Flannery also spent time living in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

, and

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, but spent most of his life in Washington. He owned one of the largest stone carving businesses in Washington and specialized in carving tombstones. District of Columbia Court of Appeals

Flannery knew President

and was at

Ford's Theatre Ford's Theatre is a theater located in Washington, D.C., which opened in 1863. The theater is best known for being the site of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. On the night of April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth entered the theater box where ...

the night of the

assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

. Shortly after Lincoln's death, Washingtonians chose to erect a memorial honoring the slain president. Many designs were submitted to the monument planning committee, but Flannery's model was unanimously chosen. The committee called his design the "most spirited" and "an excellent likeness." The memorial was dedicated on April 15, 1868, the third anniversary of Lincoln's death. Flannery's statue is the only statue of Lincoln created by someone who knew him. In addition to the Lincoln sculpture, Flannery's notable works include the Arsenal Monument at

Congressional Cemetery The Congressional Cemetery, officially Washington Parish Burial Ground, is a historic and active cemetery located at 1801 E Street in Washington, D.C., in the Hill East neighborhood on the west bank of the Anacostia River. It is the only American ...

and a sculpture of President

Chester Arthur Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was the 21st president of the United States, serving from 1881 to 1885. He was a Republican from New York who previously served as the 20th vice president under President James A. ...

on display at the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

. Flannery sculpted a marble bust of General John A. Logan that was previously exhibited in the

Capitol Capitol, capitols or The Capitol may refer to: Places and buildings Legislative building * United States Capitol, in Washington, D.C. * National Capitol of Colombia, in Bogotá * Palacio Federal Legislativo, in Caracas, Venezuela * National Ca ...

. A copy of that bust made by artist

Franklin Simmons Franklin Bachelder Simmons (January 11, 1839 – December 8, 1913) was a prominent American sculptor of the nineteenth century. Three of his statues are in the National Statuary Hall Collection, three of his busts are in the United States Senat ...

was used in producing the equestrian sculpture ''

Major General John A. Logan ''Major General John A. Logan'', also known as the General John A. Logan Monument and Logan Circle Monument, is an equestrian statue in Washington, D.C., that honors politician and American Civil War, Civil War general John A. Logan. The monum ...

''. Flannery never married and lived alone until his death at his residence on December 19, 1922.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flannery, Lot 1836 births 1922 deaths Artists from Washington, D.C. Irish emigrants to the United States 20th-century American sculptors 20th-century American male artists 19th-century American sculptors 19th-century American male artists American male sculptors