Seaman Statue Dedication
St Helens, November 5, 2005
Pictures by Tim & Laurie Ewert
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On Nov. 5, 2005, the Historical Society of Columbia County held a dedication
ceremony for a Seaman statue that was placed at Columbia View Park in St.
Helens, Oregon. The newfies were again invited to participate. We were
joined by about 30 people in pouring down rain. The gazebo and canopies
held up well for us but still very cold. The Grande Ronde nation was represented
by C.C. Kneeland and her daughters who sang a Chinook blessing. R.J. Brown
(President of the Historical Society and dressed as Pvt. Shannon) presented
Kneeland with a Jefferson Peace Medal and later, she gave him a Grande
Ronde pin in order to follow the tradition of exchanging gifts.
Three members of the Discovery
Expedition that has traveled across the country following Lewis & Clarks
trail were present. Mike Dotson (Capt. Lewis), Richard Presthodt (Pvt.
John B. Thompson), and Mike Bowman (Pvt. George Gibson) were in full costume.
Locals R.J.Brown as Pvt. George Shannon and Richard Cassidy as Pvt.
Jean Baptiste Lepage also added to the atmosphere.
Robert Tidwell, who sculpted
Seaman with a chainsaw, was there and loved the chance to see the real
Newfoundlands next to his creation. Many cameras were snapping as our dogs
sat next to the statue. One such photo graces the front page of the Nov.9
edition of The Chronicle newspaper for Columbia County!!
Our group had Laurie, Lyndsay,
& Bethany Ewert with Morgan and Cliff & Julie Stranburg with Klunker
& Subedei participating. It has been a lot of fun to see history come
to life as we visit the various Lewis & Clark activites and watch the
peoples reactions to the Newfoundlands. Most of them discover how loveable
the "gentle giants" are .. whether they can personally handle the shedding
and drool or not is another matter. We wouldn't have it any other way!!