Post by Okwes on Sept 27, 2006 13:44:29 GMT -5
New Ashland statue honors American Indians
Wooden sculpture was carved from a tree felled at site of retail, residential development
By Robert Plain
for the Mail Tribune
ASHLAND — A new 20-foot wooden totem-like sculpture greets visitors to downtown and honors American Indians.
Carved from the remains of a tree removed to make way for a retail and luxury condominium building where Lithia Way and East Main Street converge north of downtown, the memorial is titled "We Are Here."
"We prayed when that tree came down that it would come to this end," said Agnes Baker Pilgrim, the oldest living descendant of the Takelma people, as she watched a crane lift the memorial into place Tuesday.
The sculpture, a 2,200-pound chunk of alder, depicts an eagle, a bear and a likeness of Baker Pilgrim herself. It was carved over two years by Russell Beebe. The sculpture was a condition for approval of the mixed-use development.
"I've been crying all morning," Baker Pilgrim said Tuesday. "This is one of the greatest things the town fathers could do. There is nothing in Ashland that honors the native people."
The Takelma people once called the Ashland area home. But when white settlers arrived, the inhabitants were forced to move north, said Robert Brothers, a member of the committee that helped establish the memorial.
"It's a very emotional day for Agnes," he said, noting that the statue is being erected on the 150th anniversary of Southern Oregon's Trail of Tears, when the native people were removed. "This is part of their cultural restoration. They are down but not out, and they are coming back."
Dan Wahpepah, an American Indian from the Midwest who relocated to Southern Oregon many years ago, echoed Brothers' comments.
"After 200 years of removal, the native people are finally getting the respect we deserve," he said. "The First Nations (American Indians) are stronger than ever. Even after the genocidal policy of the U.S. government, the native people still survive."
About the erecting of the statue, he said, "This will help to bridge the gap."
Wahpepah, along with his drumming group Whistling Elk, will lead a drum procession from Briscoe School to the sculpture on Sept. 30, when an event to honor American Indians is scheduled for the school grounds.
Beebe, the sculptor, said it is the pinnacle work of his artistic career because of what it means to the American Indians.
"What it means to me is one thing," he said, as he pulled on a rope that helped guide the memorial into place. "What it means to Agnes and her people is something else entirely."
Robert Plain is a reporter for the Ashland Daily Tidings. He can be reached at 482-3456 or bplain@dailytidings.com.
Wooden sculpture was carved from a tree felled at site of retail, residential development
By Robert Plain
for the Mail Tribune
ASHLAND — A new 20-foot wooden totem-like sculpture greets visitors to downtown and honors American Indians.
Carved from the remains of a tree removed to make way for a retail and luxury condominium building where Lithia Way and East Main Street converge north of downtown, the memorial is titled "We Are Here."
"We prayed when that tree came down that it would come to this end," said Agnes Baker Pilgrim, the oldest living descendant of the Takelma people, as she watched a crane lift the memorial into place Tuesday.
The sculpture, a 2,200-pound chunk of alder, depicts an eagle, a bear and a likeness of Baker Pilgrim herself. It was carved over two years by Russell Beebe. The sculpture was a condition for approval of the mixed-use development.
"I've been crying all morning," Baker Pilgrim said Tuesday. "This is one of the greatest things the town fathers could do. There is nothing in Ashland that honors the native people."
The Takelma people once called the Ashland area home. But when white settlers arrived, the inhabitants were forced to move north, said Robert Brothers, a member of the committee that helped establish the memorial.
"It's a very emotional day for Agnes," he said, noting that the statue is being erected on the 150th anniversary of Southern Oregon's Trail of Tears, when the native people were removed. "This is part of their cultural restoration. They are down but not out, and they are coming back."
Dan Wahpepah, an American Indian from the Midwest who relocated to Southern Oregon many years ago, echoed Brothers' comments.
"After 200 years of removal, the native people are finally getting the respect we deserve," he said. "The First Nations (American Indians) are stronger than ever. Even after the genocidal policy of the U.S. government, the native people still survive."
About the erecting of the statue, he said, "This will help to bridge the gap."
Wahpepah, along with his drumming group Whistling Elk, will lead a drum procession from Briscoe School to the sculpture on Sept. 30, when an event to honor American Indians is scheduled for the school grounds.
Beebe, the sculptor, said it is the pinnacle work of his artistic career because of what it means to the American Indians.
"What it means to me is one thing," he said, as he pulled on a rope that helped guide the memorial into place. "What it means to Agnes and her people is something else entirely."
Robert Plain is a reporter for the Ashland Daily Tidings. He can be reached at 482-3456 or bplain@dailytidings.com.