An elegant and thought-provoking DAR memorial in Pawnee Park commemorates the North branch of the Oregon Trail, which followed the Loup River through what is now the city of Columbus NE.
Pawnee Park is a lovely community greenspace along the Loup River near its confluence with the Platte River. Emigrants travelling on the North Branch of the Oregon trail passed through this area on their way west from 1846-1869, when the railroad was completed, making the old Oregon Trail wagon road obsolete.
The "Pioneer" statue is made of carved white stone that depicts an Oregon Trail emigrant in appropriate mid-19th century trail clothes, holding a rifle by his side and looking west wioth a confiodent and resolute gaze, while simultaneously a fading representation of a Native American in what appears to us as a cloud of mist is directly behind the emigrant, as of the emigrant is walking through it.
Blasterz are frankly surprised that the inventory folks missed the melting, disappearing figure of the Native American - that's what makes this statue so poignant, since it suggests that the emigrant is emerging through the mists of time, rising in power and reach, while at the same time the Native man is disappearing, receding into history.
The plinth reads:
NORTH BRANCH
OREGON TRAIL
Gratefully dedicated to
Early Pioneers by
PLATTE CHAPTER
Daughters of the
American Revolution
1927
[DAR medallion]"
From the SIRIS database: (
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"(Pioneer), (sculpture).
Artist: Unknown, sculptor.
Title: (Pioneer), (sculpture).
Dates: 1927.
Medium: Stone.
Dimensions: Approx. 12 x 3 x 4 ft.
Inscription: (On front, below figure, incised:
NORTH BRANCH/OREGON TRAIL/GRATEFULLY DEDICATED TO/EARLY PIONEERS BY/PLATTE CHAPTER/DAUGHTERS OF THE/AMERICAN REVOLUTION/1927/(insignia of Daughters of the American Revolution)
Description: Standing male figure carved out of rough stone in high relief. Figure is in a relaxed pose, looking out to his proper left. His proper left hand rests on his belt buckle, while his proper right hand holds a rifle, barrel up, at his side. Figure is bearded and wears boots and loose fitting clothes. Front face of sculpture, below figure, has smooth squared-off area with inscription and insignia of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The sculpture sits in a landscaped planter box, raised 2 ft. off the ground.
Subject: Figure male -- Full length
History -- United States -- Westward Expansion
Object -- Weapon -- Gun
Object Type: Relief
Outdoor Sculpture -- Nebraska -- Columbus
Sculpture Owner: Administered by City of Columbus, Department of Parks & Recreation, 2424 14th Street, Columbus, Nebraska 68601
Located Pawnee Park, 33rd Avenue, Columbus, Nebraska
References: Save Outdoor Sculpture, Nebraska survey, 1994.
Illustration: Image on file.
Note: The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.
Repository: Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012
Control Number: IAS NE000031"