Photos: So who was Hans Christian Heg? Here's why the Civil War hero had a statue
From the Pain and protest: Madison responds to the police killing of George Floyd series
The statue of Col. Hans Christian Heg, torn down by protesters at the state Capitol on June 23, honors a Norwegian immigrant from Wisconsin who died fighting for the Union Army in the Civil War.
“The State has sent no braver soldier, and no truer patriot to aid in this mighty struggle for national unity, than Hans Christian Heg,” the State Journal wrote Sept. 29, 1863, reporting word of his death. “The valorous blood of the old Vikings ran in his veins, united with the gentler virtues of a Christian and a gentlemen.”
Heg was mortally wounded in the bloody Battle of Chickamauga on Sept. 19 of that year and died the next day. The highest-ranked Wisconsin officer killed in combat during the Civil War, Heg commanded a regiment largely composed of other Scandinavian immigrants. He was 33 years old.
Heg settled in the Racine area with his parents in 1840 and lived in Wisconsin for all but one year, when he mined for Gold in the West before moving home to take over his family's farm. In 1859, he was elected to the statewide office of prison commander, "earning a reputation as a pragmatic reformer," according to the state Historical Society. Heg found an outlet for his anti-slavery views when he was tapped to lead his Union brigade.
The monument to Heg was unveiled on Capitol Square in October 1926 before a crowd of about 2,000 people. On Tuesday, a group of protesters tore it down, along with Wisconsin's "Forward" statue. Here's a look at coverage of Heg and the statue over the years.
Anniversary of death, 2008
The statue of Col. Hans Christian Heg, a soldier who fought for the Union Army, is photographed on the anniversary of his death, Sept. 19, 2008, in Madison.
Outside the Capitol, 1950
The statue of Colonel Hans Christian Heg, commander of the 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment in the Civil War, pictured here in 1950.
Closeup of statue, 1990
Norwegian-born Col. Hans Christian Heg of the 15th Wisconsin Infantry was mortally wounded fighting for the Union Army on Sept. 19, 1863, and died the next day. This statue of Heg by Norwegian-American sculptor Paul Fjelde, shown here in 1990, was erected in 1926.
Portrait of Heg
Portrait of Col. Hans Christan Heg, commander of the 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War.
Lithograph of mortal wounding
A lithograph titled "Charge of the 15th Wisconsin Regiment at Chickamauga; death of Colonel Heg," shows the mortal wounding of Hans Christian Heg.
Heg's death reported, Sept. 29, 1863
Hans Christian Heg's death is reported in the State Journal on Sept. 29 1863.
Site of battlefield, 2013
Chickamauga National Military Park in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, is pictured here in 2013. The location is near where Wisconsin's Col. Hans Christian Heg would have fallen on the battlefield.
State Journal story Sept. 23, 1924
State Journal story on Sept. 23, 1924
State Journal story, Oct. 18, 1926
Story from the State Journal on Oct. 18, 1926
Heg statue, circa 1936
View from the east corner of the state Capitol looking past the Hans Christian Heg statue with King Street in the background, circa 1936.
Statue in 1997
The statue of Col. Hans Christian Heg pictured outside the Capitol on Nov. 11, 1997.
Getting cleaned up, 2002
Giorgio Gikas, president of Venus Bronze Works Inc., Detroit, uses a pressure washer July 15, 2002, to clean the statue of Hans Christian Heg that sits on the Capitol Square on the corner of South Pinckney Street and Main Street. This is the first stage of the cleaning and then waxing that takes almost a day to complete. Heg was the most noted Norwegian-American to serve in the Civil War.
Act 10 protests, 2011
Lisa McLaughin of Madison tries to fit a Solidarity T-shirt on the statue of Hans Christian Heg on Capitol Square on March 12, 2011. Tens of thousands of people crowded outside the Capitol during Act 10 protests.
Dusting of snow, 2016
The statue of Col. Hans Christian Heg is covered in at the State Capitol is covered in snow in Madison on Feb. 2, 2016.
Defacing statue, 2020
Two protesters carry a leg from a statue of Hans Christian Heg, a Union Civil War colonel who fought for the end of slavery, during demonstrations in Madison on Tuesday. Protesters also tore down the state's "Forward" statue, assaulted a state senator and set a small fire in a city building Downtown.
An empty base, 2020
The base of a statue of Col. Hans Christian Heg, a Union Civil War colonel who fought for the end of slavery, remains after it was torn down by protesters during demonstrations in Madison on Tuesday night.
Dumping into the lake, 2020
Protesters dump a statue of Col. Hans Christian Heg into Lake Monona on Tuesday night in Madison.
Empty pedestal, 2020
An empty pedestal where the statue of famed abolitionist Col. Hans Christian Heg once stood. It was a scene from around the State Capitol on Wednesday after a destructive night of protests.
Defaced statue, 2020
The head of the Col. Hans Christian Heg statue is still missing and will likely need to be recast from an existing statue in the Racine County town of Norway.
Remains of statue, 2020
The recovered remains of the statue of Col. Hans Christian Heg, after it was torn down last month.
In this Series
Pain and protest: Madison responds to the police killing of George Floyd
Teryl Franklin | Wisconsin State Journal
Senior editor for audience development
Teryl Franklin is the senior editor for audience development for the Wisconsin State Journal. She has worked at the paper since 1996 in a variety of roles, including business editor, city editor and managing editor.
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