Frog Level, Later Rodessa, History, (sculpture).

Frog Level, Later Rodessa, History, (sculpture).

Dunn, Buster, sculptor.

Fix-It-Well Company, fabricator.

Frog Level, Later Rodessa, History, (sculpture).

Dedicated Dec. 1976.

Sculptures: sand, gravel and cement, painted; Columns: brick and concrete.

2 sculptures. Each sculpture: approx. H. 27 in. x Diam. 24 in.; Each column: approx. H. 10 ft. 10 in. Overall columns: approx. Diam. 6 ft. 11 1/2 in.

(On one column, incised letters:) ALABAMA (On second column, incised letters:) GEORGIA (On plaque suspended between columns:) FROG LEVEL/Later Rodessa/"History"/FROG LEVEL AND RODESSA/A TOWN MEETING WAS CALLED IN THE 1800'S BY/NOAH TYSON SR., STORE OWNER, POLICE JUROR AND/POST MASTER, TO NAME THEIR TOWN. THE FROGS WERE/HOLLERING IN A NEARBY POND. A MAN FROM ALABAMA/JUMPED UP AND SAID, "LET'S NAME IT FROG LEVEL."/AND SO THEY DID. ON APRIL 11, 1879, M.C. SPEARMAN/WAS APPOINTED POST MASTER. FROG LEVEL'S NAME WAS/CHANGED TO RODESSA IN 1898 WHEN THE K.C.S. RAILROAD/WAS BUILT IN THIS AREA. THE PRESIDENT OF THE K.C.S. NAMED THE TOWN AFTER HIS DAUGHTER, WE'RE/TOLD. In July of 1935, the I.L. Young, Gas well was brought in by United Gas Company opening one of Louisiana's Major Oil Fields. As of January 1, 1973, 101,773,804 barrels of crude oil has been produced on the Louisiana side. unsigned

A gateway with two frogs sitting on stone pillars, flanking a central plaque.

Allegory -- Place -- Frog Level

Allegory -- Place -- Alabama

Allegory -- Place -- Georgia

Animal -- Amphibian -- Frog

Outdoor Sculpture -- Louisiana -- Rodessa

Administered by Caddo Parish Commission, Highway Department 108 Finley Drive, Vivian, Louisiana 71082

Located Highway 1, 2 7/10 miles from the Texas line, Rodessa, Louisiana

The frogs commemorate those who came from Georgia and Alabama and settled in the area. The city of Rodessa named in 1896, took over two smaller nearby communities - Spoonful and Frog Level, named for the noise of the frogs in a nearby pond. The idea for the monument came from Rodessa's mayor, Noah Tyson. The sculptures cost about $2,700 and were donated by the Fix-It-Well Company. IAS files contain a related article from the Caddo Citizen (Vivian, LA), Jan. 6, 1977, pg. 9-B and correspondence dated Dec. 19, 1974 from Noah Tyson.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Louisiana survey, 1995.

Caddo Citizen (Vivian, LA), Jan. 6, 1977, pg. 9-B.

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

Control Number:

Horizon Information Portal 3.25_9382

Powered by SirsiDynix

About | © 2020 Smithsonian | Terms of Use | Privacy | Contact

SIRIS - Smithsonian Institution Research Information System