Texana Thursday: A Tale of Two Statues

Workers pose with the Goddess of Liberty statue, 1888 (Texas State Preservation board photo)

When one looks at the state Capitol building in Austin, there is of course much to see and admire. Perhaps the most striking feature is the Goddess of Liberty statue that sits atop the Capitol.

Workers created the statue with exaggerated facial features so people could see the face from the ground. The Capitol is 308 feet tall, and is the second tallest such building in the United States. (Louisiana, with its Art Deco style tower building built in 1932, is the tallest at 406 feet.)

A famous picture exists of the crew with the statue before it was placed atop the Capitol for its 1888 opening and is reproduced here. Look carefully behind the building and one can see a crane used for hoisting.

The University of Texas Tower, built in 1937, stands at 307 feet. The Capitol and the Tower represented the Austin skyline for many years. One might say that the goddess, facing south with a star in her left hand and a sword in her right, kept an eye on things from above.

Things were changing by the 1980s. New, taller office buildings were being built. The Capitol itself was undergoing renovations, and it was clear that the goddess’s best days were behind it. A variety of factors, including lightning, pollution, changes in temperature, and wind helped to erode and damage the sculpture. The decision was made to remove and replace the statue with a replica. The new goddess is made of aluminum and weighs approximately 1,000 pounds.

Removing the statue from its perch was relatively smooth, thanks to skillful helicopter piloting.

Placing the new statue would prove a different story.

When it was time to place the new statue, the building itself was closed and people gathered along the perimeter of the Capitol grounds to watch a historic moment. But the initial attempts at placement proved unsuccessful.

In June 1986, the Mississippi National Guard, which used a different model helicopter, was brought in to place the statue. This time the efforts were successful, and the Capitol had its statue.

Later that summer, then-Governor Mark White called the Legislature into special session. It was discreetly pointed out that the crew that placed the statue was from Mississippi, and not from Texas. Not to worry, though: the Legislature passed a resolution making the helicopter crew members all honorary Texans.

The old statue was refurbished and is on display today at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, which is just north of the Capitol and state government complex.