While Capitol workers admitted they had no idea who Philo T. Farnsworth was, a larger-than-life statue of him was placed in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda Tuesday between statues of George Washington and Martin Luther King.
Dedication ceremonies for the statue are scheduled for Wednesday."I never heard of him until we received the background information on the statue," said Tom Ward, supervising engineer of the Capitol, as he directed eight workers carrying the bronze statue up the 50 steps to the Capitol doors.
"Being an engineer, you would think I would have heard of him, but I didn't. I think it's great to have a statue here of someone besides just politicians."
Days of rain eased just in time to allow workers to carry the statue pallbearer-style up the same stairs that deceased presidents have been carried up to lie in state. Its 1,200-pound pedestal received a ride up a freight elevator.
Farnsworth's statue will be displayed in the Rotunda six months before being moved to a nearby hall.
The driver of the moving van that brought the statue admitted it seemed it had rained all the time he was driving across the country and almost rolled once when cut off by another car. "You worry about that when you're carrying something as important as this."
Neil Hadlock, owner of Wasatch Bronzeworks, which cast the statue by James Avati, said he is glad the statue will help the public learn who Farnsworth was.