'Monumental job: Cameron man gives Milam statue a makeover' by Jeanne Williams.Temple Daily Telegram

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Monumental job: Cameron man gives Milam statue a makeover

by Jeanne Williams

Temple Daily Telegram - June 2, 2008

CAMERON - Fine art conservation master Robert Alden Marshall

- who trained at the Smithsonian Institute, cultured his skills

on famous figurines at Versailles, and refaced thousands of

exalted historical images - is responsible for the brown patina

sheen being worn by the 80-year-old bronze statue of Texas

Revolutionary War hero Benjamin Rush Milam in downtown Cameron.

Marshall, who divides his time between Fort Worth and a

Cameron-area ranch, said he literally annoyed Milam County

officials into allowing him to work on the corroded statue

that stands on the courthouse square.

Marshall said incentive was the basis for his agreement to clean

the statue at a bargain-basement price of $4,000.

He spent last week setting up scaffolding, assessing damage and making repairs.

Marshall has operated Marshall Art & Architectural Conservation & Gold Leaf Studio in

Cameron since 2004.

He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry,

and earned a master’s degree in fine art conservation from the Smithsonian Institute in

Washington, D.C.

He interned at Stern & Co. restoring antique musical instruments, and in France at The

Louvre and le Jardin de Versailles, where he worked on stone and bronze sculpture. His

career has included numerous restoration projects of historic buildings, including the

Pennsylvania State Capitol, Colonial Williamsburg furnishings and statues.

Some of his latest work was done in Waco. Marshall has been honored nationally and in

Texas for historical restoration and preservation.

The Ben Milam statue depicts a moment in Texas history when Milam rallied 300 volunteers

for a raid on San Antonio on Dec. 5, 1835. One of 20 monuments commissioned around the

state, Milam County’s $14,000 namesake statue was part of the 1936 Texas Centennial

commemoration that targeted historical monuments, buildings and museums, Texas

Historical Commission documents stated.

London-born Bryant Baker - a renowned artist from New York, who created busts for five

U.S. presidents, statues of Abraham Lincoln and Henry Cabot Lodge, and the Oklahoma

State Monument titled “The Pioneer Woman” - was commissioned to craft a bronze memorial

of Ben Milam based on drawings by architect Donald Nelson.

Discolored by green verdigris - copper corrosion - and accretions of bird guano, the Ben

Milam statue caught Marshall’s attention one day in 2001 when he drove through downtown

Cameron. Marshall negotiated with County Judge Frank Summers for years before the price

corresponded with the county budget, Summers said.

“I annoyed them enough. I just kept on,” Marshall said. “They are getting it done

cheaper than I would ever do it. I had incentive, so I gave them a discount.”

Though discolored, Marshall assessed the artwork to be in good condition, without any

loss of features, large pits or holes.

“The whole point is to have it look as original as possible,” said Marshall as he worked

from scaffold height. Left untreated, corrosion eventually would have damaged the

statue, he said.

Once finished with cleaning the corrosion, Marshall then applied a wax to coat the

metal. He instructed Summers: “Just bathe him twice a year, just hose him down.”