County of Statue: Chariton County
Location of Statue: Ash St. & Bridge St., Price Park, Keytesville
Sculptor: Allen George Newman (1875-1940)
Fabricator: McNeel Marble Works
Statue Erected by: The State of Missouri & United Daughters of the Confederacy
Dedication Date: June 17, 1915; Rededicated June 17, 1990
Statue Text:
(Proper Left Base):
MAJOR GENERAL, C.S.A.
1862 - 1865
(Proper Rear Base - Plaque):
GENERAL STERLING PRICE
Born in Prince Edward County, Virginia
September 11, 1809
Resided in Chariton County Missouri
1831 - 1865
Speaker
Of the House of Representatives
Of Missouri General Assembly
1840 - 1844
Elected to Congress 1844
Participated in War with Mexico
1846-1848
Rising from rank of Colonel
To that of Brigadier General
Chairman of Convention of 1861
Major General in Command
Of Missouri State Troops 1861-1862
Died in St. Louis Missouri
September 29, 1867
(Proper Right Base):
GOVERNOR OF MISSOURI
1853 - 1857
(Proper Front Base):
GENERAL
STERLING PRICE
1809-1867
Statue Proper Description:
"A figure of General Sterling Price, standing in military dress uniform, wearing a thigh-length coat, trousers, and calf-high boots. He holds a wide brimmed hat to his lower proper right side with his proper right hand. His proper left arm hangs to his side with his proper left fist closed. A sword and tassels hang from his sash at his proper left side. The figure is mounted on a base with reliefs bordering the top section." ~ Smithsonian American Art Museum
Remarks: "General Sterling Price, 1809-1867, although born in Virginia, spent most of his life in Missouri. He served in the Missouri Legislature and became the Missouri Speaker of the House. In 1846, he represented Missouri in the United States Congress. He served in the Mexican War and in 1847 was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general. In 1852, he was elected the eleventh Governor of Missouri and served two terms. During the Civil War he favored the Union but due to a variety of circumstances, felt compelled to support the Confederacy. He became Confederate General in April 1862 and participated in a number of important battles. He died in St. Louis on September 29, 1867. A bill was passed in 1911 by the Missouri State Legislature appropriating $5,000 for the erection of a monument memorializing General Price. Some of this money dated to a pay increase General Price refused to accept when he was Governor in 1852. The United Daughters of the Confederacy gave an additional $11,000" ~ Smithsonian American Art Museum
"The first endeavor of Sterling Price into public service was in Missouri, where he served first in the Missouri House of Representatives and then the United States Congress, up until the outbreak of the Mexican-American War. Once the war started, Price resigned from Congress, was appointed colonel of the Second Missouri, and became the military governor of New Mexico. While he was military governor, Price put down a rebellion of Native Americans and Mexicans, known as the Taos Revolt, and fought the last battle of the Spanish American War, the Battle of Santa Cruz de Rosales, after the war had technically ended. He returned to Missouri after the war, and was elected governor of the state from 1853 to 1857. In March of 1861, Price was president of the Missouri convention that opposed secession, but as a result of disagreements he had with Unionists, Price accepted command of the Missouri Militia to fight for the Confederacy.
"He commanded the Missouri Militia at the battle of Wilson’s Creek, where he helped to defeat Union General Nathaniel Lyon, at the First Battle of Lexington, as well as at the Battle of Pea Ridge. After the Battle of Pea Ridge, Price was granted a commission in the Confederate army on March 6, 1862 as a major general, and the Missouri Militia were added to the Confederate Army of the West. He then led his men in a campaign around Iuka and Corinth, Mississippi, in 1862, and was defeated at the Battle of Helena in Arkansas. In 1864, he led an expedition back into Missouri with initial success, but was defeated at the battles of Westport and Mine Creek. He fled with his army to Texas, and then into Mexico where they stayed until after the Civil War had ended." ~ Civil War Trust</p