The writer who led the “Harlem Renaissance” of black artists in the early part of the 20th century got his start as a book-loving boy who made his home in Lawrence.

Now a group of Lawrence residents want to honor author Langston Hughes with a statue in Watson Park, near downtown and the Lawrence Public Library. They’ll raise private donations for the memorial, if the city will allow its placement. It would be the first statue honoring an individual on city property.

“Langston Hughes is one of the most celebrated people in the history of Lawrence,” said Kenneth Wheatley, the artist behind the proposed statue and a member of the Langston Hughes Memorial Project.

Hughes, a poet, novelist and playwright, lived a few blocks from the library with his grandmother, Mary Leary Langston, between 1905 and 1913. As an adult, he wrote 16 books of poems, two novels and numerous other works, becoming one of the leading African-American voices during the Jazz Age.

“He’s internationally considered in literary circles to be a literary genius,” Wheatley said. “He spent his formative years in Lawrence, and he discovered books in Lawrence. It’s important we remember a man such as this.”

The Lawrence City Commission is scheduled tonight to receive a request to accept the donated statue. But Wheatley said Monday his group might ask to delay the request a week so a formal presentation can be made.

City officials seemed receptive to accepting a donation.

“He’s an honored citizen of the city,” said City Manager Mike Wildgen. “There’s obviously people who want to continue to honor him, and that’s great.”

Langston Hughes admirers are raising money privately and have commissioned a statue of the renowned author and former Lawrence resident. Now they want the Lawrence City Commission's approval to put the statue in Watson Park. A small version of the sculpture by Kenneth Wheatley, Lawrence, is shown here.

Wheatley said the statue, which would depict an adult Hughes sitting on a bench cradling a book, ideally would be placed near the park’s gazebo.

Before that can happen, though, the city commission will send the proposal to both the Lawrence Arts Commission and Parks and Recreation Advisory Board for review. City policy, developed in the late 1990s after battles about the aesthetics of a proposed memorial to World War II soldiers at the Lawrence Visitor Center, requires the review before the city commission can accept the donation of public art.

Wheatley expressed concern that going through the full process would be too slow, but city officials said Monday they would stick with the policy.

“I think it’s a beautiful statue,” Mayor Sue Hack said. “I’m excited people would do it. But I also think we should go through the proper procedure.”

¢ Langston Hughes Symposium Web site¢ Books by Langston Hughes¢ Books about Langston Hughes¢ Langston Hughes in Lawrence¢ America’s Story: Langston Hughes¢ Cup o’ Joel

If approved, it would be the first memorial statue on city property in Lawrence.

“We have art pieces in parks, but statues for people, I don’t think we have any,” Parks and Recreation Director Fred DeVictor said. “This will be one of our first.”

In the meantime, Wheatley said, organizers will soon begin raising $40,000 from the public to pay for the statue.

“Ideally, we’d like to raise this in a lot of small donations so the city could feel like it’s theirs,” Wheatley said.

The commission meets at 6:45 p.m. in City Hall, Sixth and Massachusetts streets.