August 2, 2025
Basil Watson, a Jamaican-born sculptor, is creating the statue of Smalls.
The likeness of Robert Smalls, the escaped slave turned South Carolina lawmaker, will be remembered as the first African-American person honored with a statue at the State House at the hands of a Black sculptor, CBS News reports.
Basil Watson will be known as the artist to add color to the group of statues — all of White men, some with ties to the Civil War or Jim Crow — in South Carolina. “It’s an honor to get to put this piece on the state Capitol in South Carolina,” the 67-year-old artist said.
Watson’s work tells the story of Smalls’ legendary journey from illiteracy to a pioneering statesman after becoming a top Union naval officer during the Civil War. He credits bipartisan support from state leaders and advocates for making the 12-foot statue a reality. According to the South Carolina Daily Gazette, legislators voted unanimously to memorialize Smalls back in May 2024. Democratic Sen. Darrell Jackson celebrated the decision by his colleagues on both sides of the political aisle to commemorate Smalls. “Considering we’re the state that initiated the Civil War … I think it says a lot,” Jackson said.
“I want to commend my colleagues for supporting it overwhelmingly.”
It prompted a history lesson for some Republican leaders, like Sen. Chip Campsen, who requested more information. Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey said Campsen’s questions are the reasons why Smalls’ story should be celebrated.
Smalls escaped slavery in Charleston by hijacking a Confederate ship in 1862. After picking up his family and navigating them through an abundance of Confederate guns to the Union blockade, Smalls won freedom for himself and his family in addition to other enslaved crew members. Prior to passing away in 1915, Smalls became a state legislator and a five-term congressman.
Watson plans to place Smalls’ image on a stack of books to symbolize the former slaves’ inspiring and elevated story. Historian John McCardell supported sentiments of the lawmakers, recognizing him as a courageous man who put his freedom in his own hands. “Here is someone whose intelligence was recognized almost literally from birth. He was bold and courageous on that night in May of 1862 when he brought his family and others on board, and, almost miraculously, delivered that ship to the Union blockade offshore,” McCardell said.
He said the statue “helps to complete the incomplete and unfinished story.”
As Confederate images and flags have been removed from several statehouses, including the Palmetto State, several advocates have called for statues to be removed altogether. However, Massey feels that Smalls being there is bigger than any potential backlash. “He’s significant to South Carolina and even the country as a whole,” the Republican leader said.
“There aren’t a whole lot of folks, I think we should be adding to the Statehouse grounds, but I think Robert Smalls is worthy.”
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