Speaker: Gene Schmiel

This event is open to the public. For more information about the Lifelong Learning Institute, Manassas, visit lli-manassas.org

In the hallowed halls of the U.S. Capitol, a quiet revolution is unfolding. Statuary Hall, conceived during the tumultuous days of the Civil War, has become the latest battleground in America’s ongoing struggle to define its history and heroes. For over a century, Statuary Hall stood as a testament to the power of the “Lost Cause” narrative. Confederate leaders like Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Union heroes, a visual representation of a deeply conflicted national memory.

The 21st century has ushered in a dramatic shift. As the nation grapples with its complex past, states are reconsidering their choices for representation in this prestigious gallery:
Helen Keller replaced Confederate Jabez Curry in 2009, marking the first such change.
Virginia bid farewell to Robert E. Lee in 2021, making way for civil rights pioneer Barbara Johns. Florida swapped Confederate general Edmund Kirby Smith for Black education leader Mary McLeod Bethune in 2022. North Carolina chose evangelist Billy Graham to replace segregationist Charles Aycock in 2024. Arkansas embraced diversity by honoring civil rights activist Daisy Bates and music legend Johnny Cash in 2024.

Gene Schmiel guides the audience through the fascinating and often contentious process of re-imagining America’s pantheon of heroes. This presentation unravels the compelling story of how America is actively redefining its heroes and confronting its complex past, one statue at a time. 

Gene Schmiel is a retired U.S. Department of State foreign service officer, who was also an assistant professor of history at St. Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania. He holds a doctorate in history from The Ohio State University and has written over twenty books about the Civil War. His first, Citizen-General: Jacob Dolson Cox and the Civil War Era , was published in 2014 by Ohio University Press. A companion book, My Dearest Lilla: Letters Home from Civil War General Jacob D. Cox (Voices of the Civil War), was published in the fall of 2022 by the University of Tennessee Press. Gene has presented four classes to LLI on historical topics.