Pioneer Courage and Spirit of Nebraska's Wilderness Park

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

These two urban parks feature several bronze sculptures, most notably, a wagon train heading west and statues of bison and geese. The wagon appears to have caused a number of environmental changes to the area, as bison flee from the wagon. The stampeded also leads a flock of geese to take flight. The park includes more than 100 individual bronze pieces throughout several city blocks. The ingenious feature of the statues are the way they actually connect several city park spaces from 14th and Capitol to 16th and Dodge together with one another.

Images

The Spirit of Nebraska Wilderness includes 67 bronze statues that appear to be responding to the nearby Pioneer Courage monument of a family heading west

The Pioneer Courage monument is a tribute to pioneer families departing westward from Omaha

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Spirit of Nebraska's Wilderness is the work of sculptor Kent Ullber, N.A., F.N.S.S., of Corpus Christi, Texas. Consisting of 67 bronze and stainless steel works, Ullberg's creation occupies First National Bank's property on all four corners of the 16th and Dodge intersection, in addition to more works on 15th Street.

Among the features of Spirit of Nebraska's Wilderness are three buffalo bulls, each standing eight feet tall and weighing more than 1,400 pounds. They stand alongside several yearling bulls and two cows with their calves, in addition to a large water feature with eight-foot-long bronze Canadian Geese taking flight. These geese are attached to a variety of structures - including 18-foot bronze trees, a traffic signal, a building corner, a light post and two other poles. The geese display culminates with several stainless steel geese suspended within the glass atrium of the First National Bank headquarters, simulating their flight from past into the modern-day world.

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