WASHINGTON, D.C. – The statue of Robert E. Lee that has stood at the U.S. Capitol for more than 100 years is gone. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam says the statue of the Confederate general was removed Sunday night.

Sen. Tim Kaine and Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton watched as workmen removed the statue, which has been on display in the National Statuary Hall Collection for 111 years.

Northam praised the move, calling the Confederacy “a symbol of Virginia’s racist and divisive history.” “We should all be proud of this important step forward for our Commonwealth and our country,” said Northam.

Each state is entitled to display two statues in the National Statuary Hall Collection, and for 111 years, the Confederate statue has stood along with America’s first president George Washington as Virginia’s contributions. The two statues were added in 1909. The Lee statue had been one among 13 located in the Crypt of the Capitol, representing the 13 original colonies.

A state panel recommended on Dec. 16 that a statue of teenage civil rights heroine Barbara Rose Johns replace the Lee statue at the U.S. Capitol.