Cyrus Edwin Dallin
An American sculptor who moved beyond stereotype to create profound, empathetic bronze portraits of Indigenous life and history.
1861–1944 (age 83)·American sculptor·Birthday: November 22·The Gilded Age
Biography
Cyrus Edwin Dallin's journey from a Utah boyhood to a Boston studio produced some of America's most resonant public sculptures. Born in 1861, his early fascination with form was matched by a deep, respectful interest in the Native American cultures being pushed to the margins of the expanding nation. Moving to Boston to study, he eventually settled there, but his artistic vision was forged in the West. His 'Appeal to the Great Spirit', a poignant equestrian figure with arms outstretched, became an instant icon upon its 1909 installation at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Dallin's work was not mere documentation; it was an argument in bronze for dignity and memory. Beyond his Native subjects, he left enduring civic monuments, including a dynamic Paul Revere in Boston's North End and the gleaming Angel Moroni atop the Salt Lake Temple. A man of varied passions, he was also a skilled archer who competed in the 1904 Olympic Games.
The Gilded Age
1860–1882
Born during or after the Civil War, they built industrial America — the railroads, the steel mills, the first skyscrapers. An era of massive wealth, massive inequality, and the belief that the future belonged to whoever could build it fastest.
Cyrus was born in 1861, placing them squarely in The Gilded Age. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Cyrus Was Born
The biggest hits of 1861
Cyrus's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1861Born
President: Abraham Lincoln
1866Started school
President: Andrew Johnson
1874Became a teenager
President: Ulysses S. Grant
1877Could drive
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1879Could vote
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1882Turned 21
First electrical power plant opens in New York
President: Chester A. Arthur
1891Turned 30
President: Benjamin Harrison
1901Turned 40
Queen Victoria dies, ending the Victorian era
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1911Turned 50
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire kills 146 in New York
President: William Howard Taft
1921Turned 60
First commercial radio broadcasts
President: Warren G. Harding"My Man" — Fanny Brice
1931Turned 70
The Empire State Building opens as the world's tallest
Gas: $0.17/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Minnie the Moocher" — Cab CallowayBest Picture: Cimarron
1941Turned 80
Pearl Harbor attack brings the US into WWII
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,060Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Chattanooga Choo Choo" — Glenn MillerBest Picture: How Green Was My Valley
1944Died at 83
D-Day: Allied forces land at Normandy
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,400Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Swinging on a Star" — Bing CrosbyBest Picture: Going My Way
Key Achievements
- Created the iconic bronze sculpture 'Appeal to the Great Spirit', installed at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston in 1909.
- Sculpted the prominent Equestrian Statue of Paul Revere located in Boston's North End.
- Designed the Angel Moroni statue that crowns the spire of the Salt Lake Temple in Utah.
- Competed as an archer for the United States in the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis.
Did You Know?
He was largely self-taught as a sculptor before receiving formal training in Boston and Paris.
He created over 260 works of art during his lifetime.
He was a close friend of and shared a studio with sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens for a time.
He won a silver medal in the team archery event at the 1904 Olympics.
“A statue must be a monument to a people, not just a person.”
