LeRoy Pennysaver & News

LE ROY PENNYSAVER & NEWS - JANUARY 17, 2021 by Lynne Belluscio I have been glued to the television coverage of the happenings at the Capitol in Washington to see if I can get a glimpse of the huge portrait of Henry Clay that the LeRoy Historical Society donated to the United States Senate 13 years ago. It hangs at the landing of the Brumidi staircase that leads to the Senate Chamber. It appears that some of the riotous crowd last Wednesday, came up this staircase to the Senate Chamber. I’m just hoping that it wasn’t damaged. On the evening of September 23, 2009, a small delegation from the Historical Society was present for the dedication of the full-length portrait that had been painted by LeRoy artist, Phineas Staunton. The dedication and dinner took place in the elegant and restored Senate Reception Room. GED Brady, Barb Elliott, Shelley Stein, Joanne Graham and I went through the security entrance to the Senate and were led upstairs. The Honorable Harry Reid, the Senate Majority Leader, and Democrat from Nevada, welcomed the large group. Then Senator Schumer from New York said a few words – cajoling Senator Tom Carper from Delaware, (who was actually a descendent of Henry Clay) that Delaware might consider giving Jell-O back to New York. (When Jell-O closed in LeRoy in 1964, it moved to Dover Delaware). Then the Honorable Mitch McConnell, Republican Leader and Senator from Kentucky – Henry Clay’s home state - gave a wonderfully insightful speech about Henry Clay. McConnell mentioned that when he first came to the Senate, he sat at Henry Clay’s desk. “So, I am honored tonight to take part in unveiling this wonderful portrait of Henry Clay that will now grace the Capitol.” (The entire speech was published in the Fall issue of the 2009 Historical Society newsletter and will be reprinted in the upcoming LHS Newsletter). The folks from LeRoy were seated at several different tables, but no sooner had we gone through the buffet line, Senator Lehey from Vermont, came to our table and asked if we would like to walk over to the Senate Chamber. I have to add, that the public is never allowed on the Senate floor. In hushed tones, we walked into the room. He told us to take turns sitting at his desk. His wife noted about how messy it was. We learned that Henry Clay’s desk, which appears in the large painting, is always reserved for the Senior Senator from Kentucky, and that when Mitch McConnell became Majority Leader, they passed a resolution to allow the Junior Senator from Kentucky to use the Henry Clay desk. We asked to see Jacob LeRoy’s brother-in-law, Daniel Webster’s desk which is unique. In the early 1800s, writing boxes were added to the top of the desks. Daniel Webster refused to have the box installed on his desk, saying that if it was good enough for all the Senators before him, it was good enough for him. In the 1980s, a resolution was added that prohibited the Webster desk from being ever changed. We also searched out the desk that belonged to Jefferson Davis. In 1861, the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment was living temporarily in the Senate Chamber. A Union soldier, furious over Jefferson Davis’ abandonment of the Union and who had become the President of the Confederacy, started bayonetting the desk. He was stopped by a caretaker of the Senate Chamber, yelling, “You were sent here to protect government property, not to destroy it.” But the damage had been done. Today, a small block of inlay wood now marks the spot where the desk was damaged. The huge portrait of Henry Clay, which measures 7 foot wide and 11 tall, was given to the Historical Society by the LeRoy Central School, when the Trigon Auditorium was built. The painting had hung in the old high school auditorium in front of the Ingham grand piano. Alvin Stripp remembered the painting, and said that kids used it as a target for spit balls. (By the time that story got to the Senate Curator’s office, somehow the spit balls had become tennis balls.) The Historical Society stored the painting in the Academic Building (where the Jell-O Gallery is now) until we were contacted by Amy Burton in the Senate Curator’s Office in 2006. She asked if we would donate it to the Senate, because it is one of only three views of the old Senate Chamber. It shows the old Senate desks, the rug, the iron vents under the steps, and the puddingstone pillars. It was painted by Phineas Staunton, whose wife Emily was one of the founding sisters of Ingham University. The painting hung in the Ingham Art Conservatory on Wolcott Street, but was sold at auction for $60 when the contents of the Conservatory were sold. The Historical Society could not afford to restore it, and it was so huge, it could not be displayed, so when the Senate said they wanted it, we were glad to give it to them. So now, we hope it survived the recent attack on the Senate building. September 23, 2009 – AVisit to the Senate UPDATE: On Tuesday morning, I received a phone call from Amy Burton, formerly with the Senate Art Commission. She has verified that the portrait of Henry Clay survived the attack on the Senate and shows no sign of damage.