Notes
This full-body statue of Patrick Henry is a smaller-scale replica of the original statue, which is part of the Virginia Washington Monument in Richmond.
Designed by Thomas Crawford (1814–1857), a Rome-based sculptor from New York, the monument was commissioned by the Virginia General Assembly, funded by citizens and investments, and built from 1850 to 1869. It features a statue of George Washington atop a horse at the central highest point, surrounded by six other bronze figures: Patrick Henry, George Mason, John Marshall, Andrew Lewis, Thomas Nelson, and Thomas Jefferson. Six other allegorical figures at the founders' feet complete the star, representing Colonial Times, the Revolution, Independence, the Bill of Rights, Finance, and Justice.
This replica was probably made in the late 19th or early 20th century by an unknown maker. It is gilded with gilt-bronze known as ormolu. Ormolu is the gilding technique of applying finely ground, high-carat gold-mercury amalgam to a type of metal. The manufacture of true ormolu employs a process known as mercury-gilding or fire-gilding, in which a solution of mercuric nitrate is applied to a piece of copper, brass, or bronze, followed by the application of an amalgam of gold and mercury. The item is then exposed to extreme heat until the mercury vaporizes, leaving the gold to adhere to the metal object. The French refer to this technique as "bronze doré"; in English, it is known as "gilt bronze". This process has generally been supplanted by electroplating gold onto a nickel substrate, which is more economical and less hazardous.
An unused bolt in the center of the base indicates that the statue was once attached to a larger base; however, the exact nature of that base is unknown.
On May 15, 1962, Sydnor Barksdale "S. B." Penick Jr. (1905–1983) contacted the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation to inquire if it would be interested in receiving the statue as a donation. S. B. Penick Jr. was a second great-grandson of Patrick Henry through Henry's son, John (1796–1868). He says his father, Sydnor Barksdale Penick Sr. (1882–1953), purchased it sometime in the 1940s from an antique store in Cincinnati, Ohio. He notes that there may have been records about the statue, but that they could not be found. Penick does assert the statue is one of only two such statues cast.
In his reply on May 17, 1962, Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation President James Easley accepted the donation of the statue and hoped to place it "at some suitable position on the grounds." However, the statue never arrived. In 1977, S. B. Penick Jr. gifted the statue to the Patrick Henry Boys and Girls Plantation.
The statue remained at the Boys Plantation until it was donated to the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation on July 17, 2023, by Patrick Henry Family Services (formerly the Patrick Henry Boys and Girls Plantation).