OTTUMWA —
The Wapello County supervisors say it is working on the collapsed Chief Wapello statue even as it oversees other post-storm cleanup efforts.
“We have to make sure it’s structurally sound,” said Supervisor Jerry Parker on Monday.
Winds that may have exceeded 75 mph toppled the chief from its perch atop the Wapello County Courthouse. Though the statue did not plummet to the ground — it lay on the roof until removed — there was significant damage to the century-old figure.
“He was broke in half near the waist,” said Parker, who had photos and news clippings spread out on his desk. “The left foot and the base is still up there, which I’m going to have taken down.”
The whole figure would then be together to be inspected and worked on at ground level. There is no timeline on when the statue could be back in place. The supervisors are doing research of minutes now to determine what kind of professional did the work last time — a sculptor, an architect, an engineer?
The board said they can’t just drop the statue back on the roof.
“We want to put it back,” Parker said. “It’s historically significant. But we also have a responsibility to make sure the public is safe.”
The statue, which had been up in the place of honor since the courthouse was completed in 1894, had withstood plenty of high winds in the past. Parker’s research indicates the chief had been taken down at least once for a refurbishment in the 1950s, meaning the statue stood for more than 50 years.
Supervisor Steve Siegel pointed out that when it went back up, the statue was in place another 62 years. Siegel believes the 12-foot-tall figure was purchased from an architectural catalog in the late 1800s.
Still, Parker said, it’s clear where work was done to the figure by hand: The buckskin clothing was hammered by hand, as was each individual feather; the veins show on the muscled arms of the Native American sculpture.
For those historical purists who have suggested the figure is a more generic Native American rather than Iowa’s famed Chief Wapello, it may have started out that way, acknowledged Parker. For 120 years, that figure has represented Chief Wapello and stands atop the courthouse to honor him.
“Engineering-wise, we have to be secure. We are not going to rush this, but we are not going to just forget about it, either,” Parker said.
Local News
Related Photos
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Nearly 100 people gathered as the metal “Chief Wapello” statue is secured for the trip to a county maintenance shop. The figure was damaged when 75 mph winds toppled it Saturday. Former Courier photographer Melissa Palen was on hand Saturday night to photograph the event.
County researches chief’s restoration
First priority in any repair will be to make sure it’s structurally sound
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