In the context of this artwork, explain the Creation of the History.
The statue Robert E. Lee on Traveller was made by Alexander Phimister Proctor. When Proctor was hired by the Southern Women's Memorial Association to design an equestrian statue of Lee, he initially planned for the statue to depict Lee and a young Confederate States Army soldier heading into a storm with their heads down and the heads of their mounts lowered. Members of the Association were offended that the statue would depict a defeated South, so Proctor redesigned the statue to depict Lee as confidently marching forward. This new design was quickly and enthusiastically approved by members of the association and by Lee's grandson. The statue cost $50,000. Proctor eventually would come to believe that Lee "was never personally defeated," an idea popular in the Southern United States. Proctor modeled his likenesses of Lee on old photographs while basing his likeness of Lee's horse, Traveller, on a horse owned by a friend, the general's writings, and photographs of Traveller. It took Proctor two years to complete a working model of the statue and another two years to complete the finished statue. The statue was originally planned to be put in Dealey Plaza, though it was erected in Oak Lawn Park.
Southern United States Robert E. Lee Confederate States Army equestrian statue Southern Women's Memorial Association Dealey Plaza Alexander Phimister Proctor Traveller