PALM 00039

Bouly, Louis Alexis Achille

George D. Prentice

1876

Stone

White Carrara Marble

Another important figure in Louisville history is George D. Prentice (1802-1870), the founder of The Louisville Daily Journal, which in 1868 merged with The Louisville Courier to become The Courier-Journal. During his lifetime, Prentice was a somewhat notorious figure in the city. He was known for his exaggerated and satirical reporting style and also served as member of the "Know-Nothing" Party, a nation-wide political group that was known for its nativism and anti-Catholic sentiment. Today Prentice is best-known for the role his anti-Catholic, anti-immigrant, and pro-slavery editorials played in fomenting the hysteria that led to the Bloody Monday riots on August 6,1855, which resulted in 22 fatalities as Protestant mobs invaded Irish Catholic neighborhoods in order to prevent them from casting their votes on election day.

The sculpture was carved at the insistence of two veteran Confederate soldiers, Henry Watterson and Walter N. Halderman, editor and president of The Courier-Journal, respectively. It was created by French immigrant artist Louis Alexis Achille Bouly (1805-1876) who had just recently established a studio practice in the city. Upon its completion in 1876, the work was placed in a niche above the main entrance of the new Courier-Journal building (now demolished), which was then located at the southeast corner of Fourth and Green (now Liberty) Streets. Although it was regarded as a "splendid" work of art at the time of its creation, the statue has since been the topic of much controversy and vandalism due to the sordid legacy left by Prentice, whose notoriously controversial political beliefs and journalism practices earned him a bad reputation amongst citizens of Louisville. When The Courier-Journal building underwent an expansion 1912-1913, the statue was relocated to the front lawn of the Main Library Branch at 301 York Street, where it still sits today. (KTF)