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                       Proposed Landmark Sculpture for the
Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum

      See Photos Following News Release

NEWS RELEASE

                      From The Texas Ranger Sculpture Committee

The Texas Ranger Sculpture Committee has proposed to give a $650,000 gift to the citizens of Waco and to the Texas Rangers.  The sculpture will be funded entirely by donors and there will be no taxpayer money involved.

The purpose of the sculpture is to honor the Texas Rangers, one of the world’s most famous and effective law enforcement agencies, with a dignified and professional sculpture of a Texas Ranger from the era of the early 1900’s. The Texas Ranger depicted was modeled referencing original artifacts in the collection of the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum.

A second goal will be to encourage tourists from the more than 36 million vehicles a year that pass by the I-35 location to stop and visit the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum.  While on the grounds they will find the Waco Tourist Information Center and will be encouraged to stay in Waco and visit our other outstanding museums and tourist destinations.  The third goal will be to enhance the local economy through increased tourism.

The Texas Ranger Sculpture Committee is pleased and proud to present to the citizens of Waco visual representations of how the proposed sculpture honoring the Texas Rangers would appear.  The display will seek comments from the public and from the Texas Rangers.

The pictures will be on display at the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum and at City Hall until the end of the year.  The public is invited and encouraged to come view the pictures and share their comments about the project.  We welcome your comments. [The e-mail comment period ran from December 19, 2007 through January 4, 2008. Your comments are still welcome by mail at "Sculpture, Texas Ranger Hall of Fame, PO Box 257

Everyone is urged to view the pictures and give their input.  We sincerely want the sculpture to represent the thoughtful wishes of the citizens of Waco.

The project has been endorsed by the Advisory Board of the Waco Visitors and Convention Bureau, the Hotel/Motel Association.

Southbound Appearance from I-35 - Elevated

Appearance from Northbound I-35 Lane Looking Back

Southbound Appearance from I-35 - Vehicle Level

Detail of Face - Working Model

About "Watching Over Texas"

The Watching Over Texas Proposal
A group of citizens and benefactors propose to donate a landmark sculpture by artist David Adickes to honor of the 40th anniversary of the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum and the 185th anniversary of the Texas Rangers. 

The Waco City Council and the Texas Rangers have consented to a preliminary study by the Sculpture Committee examining such issues as design, height, placement, etc.  The Committee has sought input from artists, business leaders, community representatives, Texas Rangers and others in order to formulate a proposal that could be presented for comment from the Public and review by the Texas Rangers. Following this review the Waco City Council will deliberate on acceptance of the gift.

The Image
The proposed landmark sculpture represents a "classic" image of a Texas Ranger chosen to broadly represent Texas Rangers of all cultural backgrounds from 1823 to 2008.  Elements such as the western hat, boots and "Texas Star" badge continue to be worn today as a point of pride within the service. The artifacts used to model the figure are from the museum collections including an 1873 Winchester carbine, a bowie-style knife, tie, vest, 1880s badge and belt.

The Statue
The sculpture is proposed to be 60' with a 10' base. This size was arrived at after scaling it to achieve visibility from the freeway and appropriateness for the environment. It would be sculpted and cast from a special artist-grade cement used internationally in artworks and tinted to a shade complimentary to the surroundings.

The Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers are the oldest State law enforcement agency in the United States. Founded in 1823 by Stephen F. Austin under the government of Mexico, they have served under five flags. Commemorating their 185th anniversary in 2008, the Texas Rangers will consist of 133 sworn officers organized in 7 companies. Waco is the home of Company "F", with the largest number of Texas Ranger serving Texas Rangers.

The Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum
The Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum is a partnership between the City of Waco and the Texas Department of Public Safety. Sanctioned by the State Legislature in 1964, it is the official museum, Hall of Fame and repository (library, archives & artifact collection) of the Texas Rangers.  It opened in 1968 and has welcomed more than 3.5 million visitors.  It preserves and disseminates a unique multicultural Texas heritage and has brought more than $100M (University of Michigan calculator tourism impact study) in tourism revenues into the local economy.