Friends Restore Shaw Memorial to Former Glory

The Robert Gould Shaw Memorial, which honors the the African-American 54th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, has been restored to its former glory.

The monument, at the corner of Beacon and Park streets, was by a woman who threw a can of yellow paint on it. Police arrested and charged Rosemine Occean, 38, of Quincy with the vandalism. Occean has . 

She allegedly stated after throwing the paint that the sculpture was an “improper depiction of history," according to Jake Wark, the spokesman for District Attorney Daniel Conley. 

The Friends of the Public Garden sent out a conservationist who carefully cleaned off the paint. It is the second time less than six months that paint has been used to deface the monument. But this attack was more difficult to clean, according to Mary Halpin, the director of development for the Friends of the Public Garden, which paid for the $7,800 repair. 

"This cleanup effort was much more extensive because of the greater volume of paint on the memorial and the paint on the stonework below, which was difficult to remove," Halpin said. 

"We have received some contributions for this effort. One was from an anonymous donor who wrote, 'From those who knew the vandal as a nice, beautiful, young lady (pre-mental illness).'"