Chicago Park District to Begin $1 Million Restoration of Jackson Park’s Statue of the Republic

The Chicago Park District will launch a major restoration of the iconic Statue of the Republic in Jackson Park this May, aiming to revitalize one of the city’s most prominent public monuments. The 24-foot gilded statue, informally known as the Gold Lady, stands at the 63rd Street and Hayes Drive traffic circle and has graced the park since 1918. Officials say the $1 million project will include extensive repairs and regilding, as deterioration of the gold leaf has left areas of the underlying bronze exposed in recent years.

According to Andrew Schneider, Director of Historic Assets for the park district, the restoration process will involve stripping away the damaged gold leaf, laser cleaning the entire sculpture, and applying new layers of protective finishes and adhesive before artisans hand-apply 12,000 to 15,000 pieces of new gold leaf. The work is expected to take two to three months to complete, during which the statue will be enclosed for protection.

The current Statue of the Republic, designed by Daniel Chester French and set atop a base crafted by Henry Bacon, commemorates the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and the centennial of Illinois’ statehood. The statue was last regilded in 1992, making this its first major restoration in 33 years. The project also receives support from the Art Institute of Chicago’s B.F. Ferguson Monument Fund, which will contribute $140,000 toward the cost of gold leaf materials.

Future phases may address the statue’s base and lighting enhancements, potentially bringing the total investment to $2.3 million, Schneider said. The restoration follows recent efforts to rehabilitate other historic features in Jackson Park, signaling increased attention to the area’s cultural landmarks. Work on the Statue of the Republic is scheduled to begin in May, with completion anticipated by late summer.