suns along the Mohawk

follow-up (May 22, 2012): He’s back!  See “Lawrence’s sojourn ends“.

prior update: (14May2012) the refurbished base awaits Lawrence’s return .

– Lawrence’s refurbished base – May 14, 2012 –

– comparison before and after the base’s makeover – click on image to enlarge –

[original posting]

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– Lawrence begins lift-off at 12:08 pm [R] leaving behind his pedestal [L]; click to enlarge –

– follow-up: see out posting on the Lawrence Restoration Fundraiser –

 Every 125 years or so (see the Follow-up at the end of this posting for a correction), Lawrence the Indian deserves to get away from his perch and his Circle for a bit of rejuvenation or recreation.   Thanks to the Stockade Association, Legere Restorations and Buddy’s Tree Service, he started a brief journey this afternoon, and will be away while his pedestal is being restored by the Legere firm.  See today’s Schenectady Daily Gazette, “Stockade’s famed Indian taking a brief vacation” (by Kathleen Moore, May 2, 2012, at B1; online by subscription); update (May 3, 2012): Bill Lambdin of WNYT [Ch.13] filed an informative report last night, with a 2-minute video featuring Frank Gilmore; the Times Union has a slideshow.

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– to prevent damage, Lawrence had to be carefully secured for the lift and the ride by Buddy Allen and his crew –

This slideshow covers the action from about 11:50 am to 12:22 pm.

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– if you start missing the laconic and iconic Lawrence, or want to know more about his story, check out our posting “Looking for Lawrence” –

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– Lawrence the Indian with Ray Legere: separated at birth? –

update (5:30 PM): The Legere folks have already erected a tent over the pedestal and begun baking-soda blasting.  You can see the clouds from the blasting rising above the tent in this photo (click on it for a larger image):

– don’t worry, Ray Legere came down from the pedestal before the tent went up:

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– you can share this posting with this short URL:  http://tinyurl.com/LawrenceMoved –

follow-up (May 22, 2012): My favorite source of local lore and facts, Rob Petito, just wrote the Stockade email list to remind us that: “This year’s work is not the first time that Lawrence has taken a stroll around the “Old Dorp.”  In 1986, Lawrence underwent a major restoration that included re-plating and refinishing the bronze coating on the zinc casting, and the cast-iron base was restored and repainted.  Also, the head dress and arrow were replaced.”

postscript (Jun 17, 2012): If you have a subscription to the online Schenectady Gazette, I encourage you to enjoy the informative op-ed piece by architect and Stockadian Frank F. Gilmore, titled “Lawrence the Indian proves to be example of ship carver’s art” (June 3, 2012).  Frank tells us, among other tidbits, that:

• “After some fascinating digging, I discovered that this 5-foot-7-inch statue represents a refined high point in the evolution of the art of American ship carvers of the 19th century.”
• “Lawrence came from the J.L. Mott Iron Works on the Harlem River in the Bronx. The statue — a multi-pieced zinc casting assemblage — came, probably, with a cast-iron base that included a fountain with basins for horses to drink from.”
• [Fultonville entrepreneur John Henry] “Starin had brought Lawrence to the Mohawk Valley probably as a bronzed garden ornament for his ‘San Simeonesque’ estate. Reputedly generous and civic-minded, he, at some point, must have donated the Indian to the city of Schenectady.” (Click here for a Gazette article on the restoration of the remarkable Starin Estate, overlooking Fultonville and the Mohawk Valley.)