The statue was a gift from the Fairmount Park Art Association and erected by the Friends Center Corporation in cooperation with the redevelopment authority of Philadelphia in May 1975. Mary Dyer was a Quaker witness for religious freedom. She was hanged in Boston Common in 1660.
The group that meets here to share meeting for worship is called the Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting. Meeting for Worship is held first day 11:00 AM but July & August only, 11:00 AM. They have been meeting under this name since 1956.
If you like the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission blue marker program than you will love this place. There are two of these historic signs out front. The first one is Civilian Public Service and the other, America Friends Service Committee. They are already waymarked so have at it.
Address
1515 Cherry Street
Philadelphia PA 19102-1403
(215) 241 7260
8:30 AM - 4:30 PM Mondays through Thursdays
I also found some information on this website. "Much of the story of Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting is also the story of Philadelphia Quakers for the last two centuries. The meeting came into existence with the merger of Philadelphia Monthly Meeting (Race Street) and Twelfth Street Meeting at the time of the reconciliation of the Hicksite and Orthodox branches of Quakerism in 1956. Margaret Bacon, writing about her own meeting, tells us about these two meetings, their schools and meetinghouses, the development of Friends organizations, and their social action that responded to the events around them, that bring us up to the present time."
For the complete history of this meeting and of Philadelphia's Friends history click HERE. Rather than just copy and paste, you can read it from the original source.
The following information comes from the Smithsonian inventory page for this statue
Inscription
"(On the proper left side of the figure's bench, lower front corner, artist's monogram:) SSJ (On front of base:) MARY DYER/QUAKER WITNESS FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM/HANGED ON BOSTON COMMON 1660/SYLVIA SHAW JUDSON SCULPTOR (On plaque on back of base:) A GIFT OF THE/FAIRMOUNT PARK ART ASSOCIATION/THIS STATUE WAS ERECTED BY THE/FRIENDS CENTER CORPORATION/IN CO-OPERATION WITH THE/REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY/OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA/IN MAY, 1975 signed"
Description
"A seated figure of Mary Dyer dressed in the very simple attire of the Quakers. She wears a full length dress that wraps across her chest and ties at the waist. The dress has long sleeves with large cuffs. On her head is a small cap with a large cuff around the front edge. Her hair is tucked up under her cap with only a few bangs visible on her forehead. She is seated on a bench with her hands folded in her lap. She wears a somber expression and her eyes are cast downward. The sculpture rests on a low, rectangular base."
Remarks
"Mary Dyer and her husband, William, were part of a group who left the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1636 to found a new settlement with Roger Williams in Aquidneck Island, now Rhode Island. Later, Mary Dyer accompanied her husband on a trip to England, where she became influenced by Friends doctrine of George Fox. She became a convinced Friend and a Quaker minister. Along with other Friends, she preached the belief that God dwells in everyone so there is no need for a "hireling clergy." The tenets of their religion held that no human being should be exalted above others. When news of their teaching reached the Massachusetts Bay Colony, it was not well received. As the first Quakers set foot in Boston in 1656, they were arrested, their books were burned and they were sent back. The General Court of the Massachusetts Bay decreed imprisonment for any Quaker coming there. When Mary Dyer returned from England in 1657, she was jailed, but her husband was able to secure her release as long as he agreed not to let her settle in any town in Massachusetts Bay Colony. Soon punishment of Quakers became more severe and by 1658, Quakers were immediately sentenced to banishment on pain of death. Mary Dyer and two others defied the law and continued to preach in the colonies. They were banished, but returned and were imprisoned. After a trial, they were sentenced to death and hanged in 1660.
This sculpture of Mary Dyer is one of two casts made by the artist. The original cast was made in Italy and 1959 was dedicated in front of the Massachusetts Statehouse facing Boston Common (IAS record 20550008). The creation of the sculpture originated in 1945 with the will of Zenos H. Ellis of Fairhaven, Vermont, who made a bequest of $12,000 to create the memorial to his ancestor, Mary Dyer, which would be installed on grounds of the Massachusetts Statehouse. The Art Commission of Massachusetts held a competition, but several years went by before Sylvia Judson's design was accepted. The artist, a Quaker herself, arranged for a second cast to go to the Fairmount Park Art Association in 1960. Because no specific site for installation had been selected, the sculpture was stored at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The sculpture remained at the Philadelphia Museum of art until 1975 when it came to the attention of H. Mather Lippincott, architect of the new addition to the Society of Friends complex. In 1975, the sculpture was placed on long term loan to the Friends Center by the Fairmount Park Art Association in cooperation with the Redevelopment Authority of Philadelphia's Fine Arts Program."