_authors/philip-reid.md
---
first_name: Philip
last_name: Reid
full_name: Philip Reid
name: philip-reid
april-fools: 2016
redirect_to: "/april-fools/2016/"
joke: |
Philip is a well-regarded sculptor and engineer. His previous government work includes bronze casting for a statue in Lafayette Park (the first bronze statue cast in the United States), as well as serving as a senior member of the team that built "Freedom," the statue that tops the U.S. Capitol dome. Philip was enslaved during his work on "Freedom" in 1860 and 1861 but was emancipated under the Compensated Emancipation Act in April of 1862. By the time the statue's final piece was hoisted onto the top of the dome in 1863, Philip was a free man.
"Freedom" was so large that it had to be cast in pieces that were individually hoisted atop the capital dome, where they were stacked on top of each other to assemble the statue in place. We're excited to have Philip as a full-stack engineer on the 18F team.
Due to other commitments, Philip will be working for the team only on April 1st. If you'd like to join Philip (and not just for April 1) you can <a href="https://pages.18f.gov/joining-18f/">see all of our openings and learn more about working at 18F</a>.)
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redirect_from: "/team/philip-reid/"
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---