18 Presidents

Rainy, foggy and cold - it's a good thing we were planning on a trip into Rapid City today. We stopped at our "home", Americas Mailbox, and retrieved more boxes and some mail. Then to Sams Club and the Safeway grocery store.

On the way home through town we were able to view the reason Rapid City is the self-proclaimed "City of Presidents." Here's the story -

When businessman Don Perdue relocated his company to Rapid City, he noticed the interest around the life-sized seated Lincoln outside a local hotel. This statue was sculpted by Gutzum Borglum, the sculptor who created the presidential images at Mount Rushmore. He saw how the general public interacted with President Lincoln, often having photos taken while sitting on the bench next to the president. 

Perdue recognized this as an asset to the Rapid City economy; what if statues stood on every street corner of the downtown area? "From the mountain to Main Street, you have seen four presidents at Mount Rushmore. Now come to Rapid City and see the rest of the family."

Involving the business and arts communities, a 10-year timeline was established and the original six sculptors selected. Each artist extensively researched the lives of each president. Everyone agreed that they did not want to create static portraits of men in suits standing on the street corners. Each statue was to give some insight into the personality and the presidency of its subject. In October 2010, the final four statues were placed and the project was completed with 42 presidents.

Rapid City claims to be the only location in the world where all United States presidents can be seen in life-sized bronze statues. Here are 18 -

George Washington

Thomas Jefferson

James Madison

William Henry Harrison

James K. Polk

 

Andrew Johnson

Chester A. Arthur

Calvin Coolidge

Herbert Hoover

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Harry Truman

Dwight David Eisenhower

Richard M. Nixon

Gerald Ford

Jimmy Carter

Ronald Reagan

Bill Clinton

George W. Bush