The Guardian take his place as protector of
Oklahoma City's State Capitol.
Photo by Scott South, Assistant Site
Superintendent.
STATUE RAISING July 7, 2002
Indian
Statue Raising Ceremony a Success
The weather was picture perfect and thousands were in attendance for the raising of the 6,000 pound Indian warrior sculpture, which tops the State Capitol Dome. Workers secured the Guardian statue with eight massive bolts at 11:27 a.m. on their second attempt. The statue had to be returned to the ground and the nylon strap replaced so the 17-foot tall sculpture would clear the dome's cupola.
Among the onlookers at the ceremony was Carolyn Hosmer Pair, who turned 100 last month and accompanied her father at another ceremony in 1914 when construction began on the State Capitol.
The statue was sculpted by State Senator Enoch Kelly Haney, an American Indian of Seminole and Creek descent whose family followed the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma seven generations ago. During the ceremonies which were filled with Native American dancers, Haney became the Guardian's voice and an excerpt from that speech is located
HERE.
The dome project is scheduled to be completed on November 16, the 95th anniversary of Oklahoma's statehood.
Click HERE for a PDF file of the Statue Raising program.
Below: Honor Guard for the U.S. flag.
Workers prepare the Guardian.
A Traditional Native American blessing ceremony is
performed on the Guardian.
The Guardian arrives at the top of the dome.
Below: Workers secure the statue at the top of the dome.
Ken Smith, site
superintendent unhooks the reigns from the Guardian.
He is the only person to reach the highest point of the
dome.
Below: The crew
that installed the Guardian.
Site provided by Frankfurt-Short-Bruza (FSB) Architects / Engineers of Record for the State Capitol Dome
