Details on Caesar Rodney Statue: Who Asked for it, Where it is Going

March 1, 2026

Shane Brennan, Delaware Online

There has been a lot of statue talk in Wilmington lately.

The Caesar Rodney statue, formerly displayed in downtown Wilmington's Rodney Square, will be making its return to the public in Washington D.C. The statue will be displayed among others honoring the country's founders as a part of the 250 year celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

The National Park Service reached out to the city, according to Mayor John Carney's Deputy Chief of Staff Daniel Walker. The White House never contacted the city about the statue.

The statue was taken down in 2020, along with the city's Christopher Columbus statue, during a nationwide reckoning on race and history during that summer's civil rights movements. Then-mayor Mike Purzycki promised a dialogue about the statue when he announced its removal, but it never substantially came.Rodney's statue was removed because of his history of being a slaveowner. He enslaved over 200 people at his family plantation, Byfield, in the Dover area. In 1769, Rodney tried unsuccessfully to pass a law prohibiting the importation of slaves into Delaware, and directed his slaves to be freed at the time of his death in 1784.

Rodney's historic legacy is his legendary ride from southern Delaware through a thunderstorm to Philadelphia, where he arrived in his boots and spurs to deliver the colony's decisive vote for independence  1776. His ride is featured on the state's quarter, and on blue and yellow signs throughout the state.

The Trump administration plans to take the Caesar Rodney statue out of storage and temporarily place it in Washington's Freedom Plaza, according to Republican state Sen. Eric Buckson, representing Kent County, who has long been trying to bring the statue back on display.

Rodney was also mentioned as a part of the National Garden of American Heroes, which was borne from a 2021 executive order signed in President Donald Trump's first term. The order lays out exactly who should join the statue garden, which includes Abraham Lincoln, Kobe Bryant, and Rodney.

Walker said officials have inspected the statue, and that it does not need maintenance. The National Park Service reached out and asked for the statue, and the city agreed.