NB NK Rotarians
learn about Ohio Statuary Vote
This spring, Ohioans have a unique opportunity to determine what
great Ohioan ought to replace the statue of Governor William Allen in Statuary
Hall at the US Capital.
Ohio
residents wishing to vote may do so by visiting
Ohio
historical site and museums March 20 -June 12 and casting a vote for who they
think
Ohio
should memorialize with the new statue. According
to the Ohio Historical Society website at www.ohiohistory.org,
“Public input will be the single greatest factor in the final
recommendation, which the committee hopes to make in July. From
there, the members will introduce a formal resolution to get the approval of
the full General Assembly.” President
James A. Garfield also represents
Ohio
in Statuary Hall.
The original list of 97 potential honorees has been
narrowed to 10 finalists by the National Statuary Collection Study Committee,
a group of legislators from the Ohio House and Senate.
The 10 finalists are: former US Representative James Ashley; inventor
Thomas Edison; President and Civil War General Ulysses S. Grant; former US
Representative William McCulloch; Olympic Athlete Jesse Owens; astronaut
Judith Resnik; author Harriet Beecher Stowe; Dr. Albert Sabin; suffragette
Harriet Taylor Upton; and the Wright Brothers.
Mr. Wesley F. Edwards (pictured) and Mr. James F. Dicke
II presented a compelling program about former
US
Representative William M. McCulloch (R) and his historic achievements while
representing
Ohio
’s 4th Congressional District for 12 terms from 1948 until his
retirement in 1973. Upon leaving a
meeting of the Piqua, Ohio Rotary club on July 2, 1963, McCulloch “sat down
with Burke Marshall and formed a commitment to the most important piece of
legislation in the history of our country,”
Edwards, said. “Congressman
McCulloch’s commitment to that legislation that would last through the
Kennedy and Johnson administrations until it was signed into law by Johnson on
July 2nd, 1964.” It
is this effort that McCulloch is most widely known and praised for.
As the ranking minority member of the House Judiciary Committee,
McCulloch led the effort to bring both parties together to approve a
bi-partisan bill that would bring peace to our country and grant identical
justice under the law for all
US
citizens.
Mr. Dicke served as an assistant to McCulloch, helping to
lead tours of the US Capitol and sees Statuary Hall as “not just a backdrop,
but a teaching moment about
Ohio
. McCulloch’s role in the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 makes him a man for the ages,” Dicke said.
Edwards and Dicke shared a list of many well known supporters of
McCulloch’s from former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy and Rev. Walter E.
Fauntroy to former US Attorneys General Nicholas Katzenbach and Robert F.
Kennedy. When it was learned in
the US House of Representatives that the US Senate had approved the Civil
Rights Act of 1964, McCulloch was given a rare, spontaneous standing ovation
by members of congress. In his
acknowledgement of that applause, McCulloch quoted Sir Winston Churchill when
he said “Never have so many of such ability worked so hard and so
effectively, for which so few have received the credit.”
More information about former Representative William M.
McCulloch can be found online at www.williammucculloch.org.
More information about the voting, the process and the finalists can be
found at www.ohiohistory.org.
Ballots for voting on the 10 finalists will be available at the
Ohio
historic sites and museums, as well as in the Southwestern Auglaize County
Chamber of Commerce offices. There
is a movement among some
Ohio
schools to engage students to learn more about these 10 great Ohioans and to
get them involved in this historic process.
To that end, kids are encouraged to learn about the finalists and vote
for their favorite Ohioan on the list.
Hosting Rotarian: Jim Dicke II
