Nathan Hale

Nathan Hale -- from Coventry, Connecticut, about 20 miles east of Hartford -- was an American spy during the American Revolution.  He was captured by the British.  As he was about to be hanged, his defiant last words were "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."

Nathan Hale's statue has stood in a prominent location on the front lawn of the Wadsworth Atheneum for more than a century.  During the museum's current renovations, Mr. Hale stands forlorn behind a high wall, amidst construction debris, visible only to tall photographers who know that he is sulking over there.