The Old Pioneer, (sculpture).

The Old Pioneer, (sculpture).

Unknown (Italian), sculptor.

Hemmeter Memorial Company, fabricator.

The Old Pioneer, (sculpture).

Fairfax Smith Statue, (sculpture).

Smith Statue, (sculpture).

Linus Smith Statue, (sculpture).

1879. Relocated 1894.

Sculpture: Carrara marble; Base: granite.

Sculpture: approx. H. 6 ft. 8 in.; Base: approx. 42 x 74 x 74 in.

(Front of base:) LINUS N. SMITH/DIED(...transcription illegible)/AGED(...transcription illegible)/HIS WIFE JULIA M./AUG. 14 1829/APR. 6 1910/HARRIET SMITH/1852-1932/(Lower, raised lettering:) SMITH/1879 (Side of base:) (...transcription illegible) SMITH/(dates)/EMMA (...transcription illegible) SMITH/(dates) unsigned

Fairfax Smith stands holding a hat at his side in his proper right hand, and an axe handle in his proper left hand, the head resting by his leg. He is dressed in boots, pants, jacket, shirt, and a bandanna wrapped around his neck. He has a beard, moustache, and curly hair and is mounted upon a multitiered polished granite base.

Portrait male -- Smith, Fairfax -- Full length

Homage -- Smith, Linus N.

Homage -- Smith, Julia M.

Homage -- Smith, Harriet

Homage -- Smith, Emma

Outdoor Sculpture -- Ohio -- Medina

Administered by City of Medina, Cemetery Department, 132 North Elmwood Avenue, Medina, Ohio

Located Spring Grove Cemetery, Spring Grove Street, Medina, Ohio

Formerly located Medina Cemetery Spring Grove Street, Medina, Ohio

Formerly located Montville Cemetery, 1 1/2 miles south of Medina on the Wadsworth-Medina road, Medina, Ohio 1879-1894.

The monument marks the graves of Fairfax Smith, a pioneer and early settler of the area, and other Smith family members. The sculpture was made in Genoa, Italy, a reorder by Mr. Smith after the first sculpture sank on a boat during shipment. The base was fabricated by the Hemmeter Memorial Company of Medina, Ohio. Originally, the monument was located in the old Montville Cemetery, around which the family owned a tract of farm land. It was placed atop a Smith family burial vault made from Berea sandstone with wood and steel doors, built by Medina contractor, L. Eteel. The total cost of the vault, monument and statue was $2,500. The vault was vandalized in 1885, and Linus Smith specified that he be buried in the then-new Spring Grove Cemetery upon his death. When he died in 1894, the monument and the bodies were relocated (without the vault) to the cemetery by the City of Medina. Spring Grove Cemetery may also have been known as Medina Cemetery. For related information see the following Medina County Gazette articles: Oct. 3, 1879; Aug. 27, 1880; March 29, 1894. IAS files contain a related, undated article from the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Ohio, Cleveland 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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