Hiawatha’s Restoration Begins

After years of planning for the restoration of Hiawatha, the historic Native American statue next to the Spanish mission house at Linden Lane and Woodstock, Save Our Seminary is thrilled to announce that on Thursday, October 27, the statue is being removed by special art movers and taken to the selected conservator’s shop.

The old yellow primer will be removed, cracks in the metal repaired, a new bow created, and paint applied to match Hiawatha’s original color of bronze. Pending weather, the deteriorated stone pedestal will also be dismantled and rebuilt exactly as the original. We hope to celebrate Hiawatha’s return by early spring if not before.

Thanks to the generous donors to Save Our Seminary, another piece of sculpture history at National Park Seminary will be restored.

Glen Updates

The proposed widening of the Beltway section that would adversely affect the historic landscape of National Park Seminary has for the time being been put on hold, but SOS continues to monitor any action that revisits this potential encroachment.

Thanks to a grant from Preservation Maryland and the Maryland Historical Trust, SOS was able to contract for a feasibility study of the most deteriorated features in the Glen—the Grand Staircase, the Grotto hillside, and bridge to the Spring. Repair and restoration are feasible, although expensive, so SOS will plan the next steps to save these features.