What is a memorial? :

What is a Monument?

Historic figures and events are often honored with monuments in public places. A monument can be a statue, plaque or a work of art. The people who create a monument make the choices about who is honored and where the monument will be placed. Monuments are meant to provide a place where people can go and remember the person or event for which it was built.

Montana, statue atop the Montana State Capitol Building

Look at these photos of two monuments that stand in the Montana Capitol Building in Helena, Montana. How are they alike? How are they different? How do these statues honor the people for whom they were built? Scroll through the photos and take time to look at the details of each statue. Write your ideas in the notes box below.

A prominent advocate of women’s suffrage, Jeannette Rankin (1880–1973) became the first woman to serve in the United States Congress after Treasure State voters elected her to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1916.

Wilbur Fisk Sanders (1834–1905) arrived in Bannack, Idaho Territory, in 1863, and is best remembered as one of Montana’s first prosecuting attorneys and one of the organizers of the Vigilantes. In addition to helping found the Montana Historical Society in 1865, Sanders also was voted by Montana’s state legislature to be one of Montana’s first senators.

How do these monuments honor the people for whom they were built? What makes these statues special? Write your ideas in the box below.