Dole Proposes Capitol Mural as Challenger Crew Memorial

Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole said Tuesday the seven crew members killed in the Challenger explosion should be memorialized at the Capitol with other “beloved and honored figures” in U.S. history.

The crew, killed when the space shuttle exploded Jan. 28, should be honored by a mural, Dole said.

“In my view, a mural of the shuttle crew would be an appropriate memorial not only to the seven, but to all our space pioneers who have given so much to their country,” said Dole, who is also chairman of the Commission of Arts and Antiquities, which has jurisdiction over Capitol artwork.

The mural, which the senator said could be completed by the end of the year, would be located in the ornate Senate hallway across from a painting commemorating the 1969 moon landing of Apollo astronauts. The corridor contains numerous portraits of other notable figures in American history.

“Because this hallway is reserved for beloved and honored figures in our history, it seems entirely appropriate that these astronauts join the great Americans already memorialized in our Capitol,” Dole said in a letter to the Rules Committee, the Capitol architect and the curator’s office, which would act on his request.

Dole estimated the mural would cost $20,000, most of which he said would come from private donations.