Unveiling of the Darwin Statue at the former Shrewsbury School building
Unveiling of the Charles Darwin Statue, Shrewsbury (1897): A Tribute to a Revolutionary Mind
This striking photograph from 1897 captures the moment a crowd gathered for the unveiling of the statue of Charles Darwin, seated in bronze before his former school in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. The statue, sculpted by Sir Joseph Boehm, was erected outside the original Shrewsbury School building—a nod to the town’s most famous son, whose ideas transformed the way humanity sees itself.
Elegant hats, parasols, and waistcoats fill the frame as people from all walks of life press forward to witness the ceremony. The seated figure of Darwin appears contemplative, a man of science rendered in stillness, as though listening to the speeches given in his honour.
This event marked more than a local commemoration—it symbolised the nation’s gradual embrace of evolutionary theory, and the enduring power of intellectual courage. Darwin had passed away 15 years earlier, but in this image, his presence is felt keenly by a town—and a world—still reckoning with his legacy.
📍 Shrewsbury, Shropshire, United Kingdom
🗓️ Year: 1897
🔍 Suggested tags: Charles Darwin, Darwin statue, Shrewsbury history, Victorian science, public monuments, unveiling ceremony, Darwin legacy, 19th century events
📸 Do you have photographs of important local ceremonies or statues in your town’s history?
Share them and help us preserve the moments where memory meets monument.
This striking photograph from 1897 captures the moment a crowd gathered for the unveiling of the statue of Charles Darwin, seated in bronze before his former school in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. The statue, sculpted by Sir Joseph Boehm, was erected outside the original Shrewsbury School building—a nod to the town’s most famous son, whose ideas transformed the way humanity sees itself.
Elegant hats, parasols, and waistcoats fill the frame as people from all walks of life press forward to witness the ceremony. The seated figure of Darwin appears contemplative, a man of science rendered in stillness, as though listening to the speeches given in his honour.
This event marked more than a local commemoration—it symbolised the nation’s gradual embrace of evolutionary theory, and the enduring power of intellectual courage. Darwin had passed away 15 years earlier, but in this image, his presence is felt keenly by a town—and a world—still reckoning with his legacy.
📍 Shrewsbury, Shropshire, United Kingdom
🗓️ Year: 1897
🔍 Suggested tags: Charles Darwin, Darwin statue, Shrewsbury history, Victorian science, public monuments, unveiling ceremony, Darwin legacy, 19th century events
📸 Do you have photographs of important local ceremonies or statues in your town’s history?
Share them and help us preserve the moments where memory meets monument.
Contributed by OldPik on January 7, 2024
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