Governor Shepherd

Governor Alexander Robey Shepherd

Shepherd served as the Territorial Governor of the District of Columbia from 1872 to 1873. Today, many of the infrastructure improvements we take for granted are the result of his efforts to improve the city through public works improvements.

Alexander Robey Shepherd (1835-1902), a District of Columbia native, was an important civil rights leader. As D.C. Governor (1872-1873) and in various elected positions as Alderman and City Council member (1861-1871), Shepherd pursued policies of equal opportunity and opposed segregation. Laws passed during his tenure in the Territorial Government banning discrimination in public places, were declared 'enforceable' by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1953 Thompson Restaurant case.

Shepherd volunteered for service in the Union Army during the Civil War, advocated emancipation and enfranchisement of the Freedmen, integrated public schools, supported the vote for women, sought representation for D.C. in Congress and a Federal payment to the city.

Shepherd stated in a letter to the President of Howard University in 1871, "I am opposed to any discrimination on account of race or color in the schools or elsewhere." Frederick Douglas, in a speech in 1877, said, "I want to thank Governor Shepherd for the fair way in which he treated the colored race when he was in a position to help them."

The success of Shepherd's civic works improvements halted the consideration in Congress of proposals to move the Capital west to St. Louis or beyond.

Shepherd's 8-foot bronze statue was commissioned entirely through private funds and stood in front of our seat of government from 1909 to 1979 when it was removed by the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation, an act of disrespect for our local heritage by the Federal Government.

The Statue was returned to the John A. Wilson (District) Building on January 29, 2005 through the AOI, members of the City Council and with the assistance of local businesses who contributed their time and resources to return the statue.

Nelson F. Rimensnyder, Historian

Note: A mini-biography of Governor Shepherd, authored by Nelson Rimensnyder will eventually appear in this space.

The Return of the Governor Shepherd Statue

After an exile of nearly a quarter century, the statue of the District's native son, Union Army Veteran, Vice-president of Public Works and Territorial Governor Alexander Robey Shepherd finally returns to his home in front of the District Building. On Saturday, January 29, 2005 -- three days before Shepherd's 140th birthday -- the Dunbar statue of Governor Shepherd was removed from the District's Department of Transportation facility on Shepherd Parkway, SW and transported back to a place of prominence in downtown D.C.

With the support of City Councilmembers Jim Graham and Jack Evans, Council Secretary Phyllis Jones, DDOT Director Dan Tangherlini and through the generosity of the Gilford Corporation, Miller & Long Concrete Construction, Hutchison International (United Rigging) and the Associated Builders & Contractors, the Association of the Oldest Inhabitants of D.C. has finally realized its long-fought effort to have the Governor Shepherd statue returned to the area from which it was removed in 1979 during the reconstruction of Pennsylvania Avenue and Freedom Plaza.

Today, rather than staring out over the city's impoundment lot, the Governor casts his gaze across the avenue near the very location where the statue was originally dedicated on May 3, 1909. AOI Historian Nelson Rimensnyder has never missed an opportunity for over a decade to champion the statue's return. Our hats are off to Nelson and everyone who helped make this happen.

Governor Shepherd Portrait in DC Councilman Jim Graham's Office

Ward 1 DC Councilman Jim Graham hosts AOI's Nelson Rimensnyder, John Richardson and Bill Brown to view portrait of Shepherd which hangs in his office at the John A. Wilson (District) Building.

On January 1, 2005, AOI members gathered in front of the John A. Wilson (Disrict) Building to call for the return of the statue of Gov. Shepherd which was dedicated May 3, 1909 and placed on a plaza in front of the District Building.

On January 29, 2005, with the assistance of then-director of Transportation Dan Tangherlini, D.C. Council Members Jim Graham and Jack Evans and through the generosity of a consortium of District construction trades, the statue once again stood, stoicly at the John A. Wilson (District) Building.

Just in time for the Jan 20th 2009 Inaugural, the M.C. Dean Company donated their time and materials to light the Shepherd Statue.

Association of the Oldest Inhabitants of DC

Welcoming Young and Old Alike to Join in Remembering the Past and Working for an Even Better Future