Potawatomie Indian, (sculpture).

Potawatomie Indian, (sculpture).

DeMyer, Howard A., sculptor.

DeMyer, Evelyn, designer.

Potawatomie Indian, (sculpture).

Chief of the Potawatomies, (sculpture).

1976. Dedicated July 3, 1976.

Sculpture: welded copper; Base: concrete with pea gravel.

Sculpture: approx. 14 x 8 x 4 ft.; Base: approx. 3 x 10 x 6 ft.

(On plaque on south side of base:) 1976 (In center of circular medallion:) 1976 (On perimeter of circular medallion:) 1776-1976 AMERICAN REVOLUTION BICENTENNIAL/ON LAND ONCE BELONGING TO HIS PEOPLE,/THIS POTAWATOMIE STANDS,/HIS BROKEN SPEAR A SYMBOL/OF PEACE WITH THE PIONEERS/PRESENTED BY THE CITIZENS OF LAPORTE/IN OUR NATION'S BICENTENNIAL YEAR ... 1976/HOWARD A DEMYER, SCULPTOR unsigned

A standing full-length figure of a Potawatomi Indian dressed in buckskin coat, trousers and mocasins, and wearing his hair in two braids with a headband and feathers. His arms are extended above his head, and he holds in his hands a spear which is broken to symbolize peace with the European settlers in the area. He stands upon a promentory, at the base of which is a miniature Indian camp and a pioneer homestead. Statue sits in reflecting pool and is lit with floodlights at night.

Ethnic -- Indian -- Potawatomi

Figure male -- Full length

Dress -- Ethnic -- Indian Dress

Object -- Weapon -- Spear

History -- United States -- Indiana

History -- United States -- Westward Expansion

Allegory -- Civic -- Peace

Architecture exterior -- Domestic

Outdoor Sculpture -- Indiana -- LaPorte

Outdoor Sculpture -- Indiana -- LaPorte

Administered by LaPorte County Board of Commissioners, Engineering Department, Lincoln Way & State, LaPorte, Indiana 46350

Located Independence Plaza, Between old LaPorte County Courthouse and new Annex, LaPorte, Indiana

It was commissioned as part of LaPorte's celebration of the American Bicentennial in 1976. The sculptor and his wife, a painter who assisted in the sculpture's design, were natives of LaPorte. IAS files contain a related article from the LaPorte Herald-Argus (LaPorte, IN), July 3, 1976, and a brochure from the LaPorte County Historical Society, LaPorte, Indiana. LaPorte County Museum reference Art and Artists (Barlos Collection) has additional information on the sculpture.

On nearby plaque: THE CHIEF OF THE POTAWATAMIE FAREWELL ADDRESS/1838/"MY WHITE BRETHREN, I HAVE CALLED YOU HERE TO BID YOU FAREWELL./MYSELF AND MY BAND AT SUNRISE TOMORROW MOVE ON TO UNKNOWN COUNTRY THAT/THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES HAS PROVIDED US WEST OF THE MISSOURI./WE LEAVE YOU AND THE SCENES SO DEAR TO US ALL. THE WHITE SETTLERS/HAVE BEEN GOOD TO US AND IT SEEMS LIKE SEVERING THE TIES OF/FRIENDSHIP. WE GO AWAY, REMEMBERING YOU WITH KINDNESS."

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Indiana survey, 1993.

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.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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