EXTRA EXTRA - E-Journal Special Report: Statue Anniversary Recalls Presidential Visit
President Gerald R. Ford addresses an estimated 15,000 spectators at the unveiling ceremony for the Truman statue on the east side of the Truman Courthouse. Karl H. Schumacher, White House Photo Office. Harry S. Truman Library and Museum. Public Domain.
By Brad Pace
Visitors to the historic Truman Courthouse on the Independence Square might not always notice the Harry S. Truman statue on the building’s east side, but 50 years ago, on May 8, 1976, it was the center of national attention.
Photo courtesy of Brad Pace.
On that day, the late president’s birthday, the square and courthouse were decorated with flags and red, white, and blue bunting for the statue’s official unveiling. The city was buzzing with anticipation over the arrival of VIPs expected to attend, especially the keynote speaker, President Gerald R. Ford. Everything had been done to make the Square sparkle. Sidewalks had been cleaned, flowers planted, store windows were appropriately dressed, and fresh paint was applied to the courthouse.
The idea for the Truman statue originated with Dr. Harry S. Jonas, while he was chairman of the Urban Renewal Board, 1971-72. A statue committee had been formed in 1974, which included two Jackson County Historical Society presidents, Mary Shaw Branton and Sue Gentry. A fundraising campaign collected roughly $70,000 in donations to pay for the project.
The artist selected by the committee, with input from the Truman family, to create the statue was sculptor and educator Gilbert Franklin, highly respected for his public art sculptures. Franklin was on hand to supervise the statue’s safe uncrating upon its arrival at the square. Cast in bronze in Rome, Italy, the Truman likeness is just under 9 feet tall and weighs about a ton. The Independence Examiner reported Franklin as saying that he had immersed himself in the study of Truman over the past two years, and would miss his daily companionship with the spirit of Truman. The statue is intended to depict Truman as he came home from Washington DC in 1953.
Photo courtesy of Brad Pace.
As the dedication ceremony began, an estimated 15,000 spectators crowded the square to hear President Ford. First Lady Betty Ford was also present, along with President Truman’s daughter, Margaret Truman Daniel, and grandson Clifton Truman Daniel. The many other notables seated behind the president included Truman’s White House Counsel Clark Clifford (who also served as President Johnson’s Secretary of Defense), Missouri Governor Christopher Bond, Senator Stewart Symington, Senator Hubert Humphrey, and the mayor of Independence, Dick King (a future JCHS board member).
The national news cameras rolled as Ford, a Republican, spoke with reverence of Truman, a Democrat. Ford said of Truman, “He knew where the buck stops, and was never afraid of the heat in the kitchen.”
Following the ceremony, the Fords travelled by motorcade directly to the Truman home at 219 North Delaware Street, where they spent about 20 minutes chatting with Bess Truman.
The statue’s patriotic unveiling on that perfectly sunny day on May 8, 1976, occurred as the nation was celebrating its bicentennial year, a very welcome change in mood following the recent Vietnam experience and the resignation of President Richard M. Nixon.
Brad Pace is a current board member and past president of the JCHS. He is a frequent writer on historical subjects.