Tex Randall, (sculpture).

Tex Randall, (sculpture).

Wheeler, Harry, sculptor.

Tex Randall, (sculpture).

Cowboy, (sculpture).

Canyon Cowboy, (sculpture).

Cowboy: concrete over a steel framework; Base: wood.

Sculpture: approx. H. 47 ft.; Base: approx. 4 ft. x 6 ft. x 3 ft. 10 in. (7 tons).

(Painted on wooden box:) Meet "TEX RANDALL"/47' TALL and WEIGHS 7 tons/BUILT in "1959" By "HARRY" Wheeler as TEXAS/BIGGEST TEXAN/Restored in 1989 by B.J.Puryear Custom Signs: With the help of.../M. Stanley Bocian, "Panhandle Stucco""Revco Sign""Lawrence Word Trucking" and "Mickey" & "Glenn" (See IAS photographs for additional markings) unsigned

A tall, lanky cowboy. He stands with his proper right foot up on a large wooden box. He leans over and rests his proper right forearm on his proper right thigh. His proper left arm is bent with his proper left hand resting on his waist. He wears jeans, cowboy boots, a long-sleeved shirt, a belt with buckle, and a white cowboy hat. He has a spur on his proper right boot and holds another spur in his proper right hand. He has a moustache.

Occupation -- Other -- Cowboy

Figure male -- Full length

Dress -- Accessory -- Hat

Dress -- Accessory -- Shoe

Outdoor Sculpture -- Texas -- Canyon

Owned by Gill, Joe, 2416 11th Avenue, Canyon, Texas 79015

Located Hereford Highway near 15th Street Overpass, Canyon, Texas

Formerly located Highway U.S. 60, Canyon, Texas

This sculpture was originally erected in 1959 as a roadside advertisement for a curio shop owned by the sculptor, Harry Wheeler. See IAS files for photocopy showing original cowboy. The cowboy wore fabric clothes, including a pair of jeans made by the Levi-Strauss Company in San Francisco, a shirt made by Amarillo Tent and Awning (consisting of 127 yards of fabric), and a belt buckle with a bucking bronco made by Wheeler. He held a cigarette in his proper right hand and wore his jeans tucked inside his cowboy boots. In 1963, when an interstate exchange went up, the statue was relocated to its present site. The statue has undergone restoration. The cowboy's original clothing was destroyed by high Texas winds, and one foot was damaged in a truck accident.

In 1988-1989, the sculpture was refurbished. Portions of the sculpture were replastered, including the cowboy's chin, fingers, hat, and the damaged foot. The sculpture was repainted and coated with fiberglass from the shoulders up. The original clothing was replaced by painted clothes. The cigarette he originally held and removed by vandals, replaced with a spur. His belt buckle was also replaced. IAS files contain related articles from Amarillo Daily News (Amarillo, TX), Jan. 31, 1987 and Dec. 12, 1988; and articles from the Amarillo Globe Times (Amarillo, TX), Jan. 30, 1987; and Canyon News (Canyon, TX), Feb. 1, 1987.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Texas survey, 1993.

Amarillo Daily News (Amarillo, TX), Jan. 31, 1987.

Amarillo Daily News (Amarillo, TX), Dec. 12, 1988.

Amarillo Globe Times (Amarillo, TX), Jan. 30, 1987.

Canyon News (Canyon, TX), Feb. 1, 1987.

Amarillo Globe Times (Amarillo, TX), Jan. 30, 1987.

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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