Mayor Kevin White
Walking near Faneuil Hall, it is easy to focus on the history you expect to find: Revolutionary sites, early American stories, the familiar markers of the city’s beginnings. Just beyond that, is a figure that is hard to ignore: the life size bronze statue of Kevin H. White.
Located at street level and captured mid-stride, the sculpture immediately draws your attention. There is movement in it, a sense that he is walking with purpose through the city he once led. This feels more like an encounter, than a memorial.
Kevin White served as mayor of Boston from 1968 to 1984, one of the longest tenures in the city’s history. His time in office came during years of significant challenge and change, including the era of school desegregation and busing, as well as the ongoing development of Boston into a modern urban center. He was a visible presence in the city, often out among the people, and that accessibility is reflected in the sculpture.
Created by Pablo Eduardo and installed in 2016 to mark the centennial of White’s birth, the statue depicts him in motion, within the public space. Its location, near Boston’s civic core, is appropriate. This is a part of the city where layers of history meet, and Major White represents a chapter in the ongoing story of this city.
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