Celebrating Return of the Elk

Reinstallation of the historic D.P. Thompson Elk and Fountain in April after an absence of nearly six years will be a wonderful moment for all of Portland and for those who believe in the importance of historic preservation.

For more than a century, the statue sitting atop an elegant decorative fountain was the kind of distinctive urban adornment that said yes, Portland is interesting, Portland is scenic and Portland cares about its historic monuments.

 But despite the glee of its return, we must not forget that it nearly didn’t happen.  A long-time Portland preservation activist, architect William J. (Bill) Hawkins III helped lead the fight to have the statue and fountain restored when many city bureaucrats were saying, essentially, “no thanks.”

 For private distribution, Hawkins last October issued a 40-page illustrated history of the fountain and the struggle to bring it back after it suffered damage from public protests in 2020.  In short, city transportation officials hoped to use more of the Main Street right-of-way for traffic lanes, the Water Bureau wanted to quit wasting water in the fountain and the Parks Bureau wanted to shed responsibility for maintenance.

 The city went so far as to file a demolition notice to remove the fountain and statue’s historic landmark designation. The Parks Bureau floated a plan to building a concrete pedestal for placement of the elk, instead of a fountain. 

The outlook for restoration of the fountain was so gloomy, this very blog in March 2022 wrote that restoration of the fountain was doomed. Readership was so widespread, it may have helped stimulate preservation activists.

 The fight for survival was personal for Hawkins, because his great uncle, Lester Leander Hawkins, had been the executor of D.P. Thompson’s estate.  In that role Leander Hawkins negotiated the siting and designs for the statue and fountain that had been given to the city in Thompson’s estate.  The elder Hawkins also had been a member of the city Park Board that established many of early Portland’s most important parks.

 Bill Hawkins started a drive to raise funds to study full restoration.  His effort was joined by the Portland Parks Foundation, eventually raising more than $200,000 to produce detailed design drawings.

 Meanwhile, City Commissioner Dan Ryan was negotiating with City Council members on the former five-member council, eventually gaining unanimous support.  The Portland Water Bureau agreed to install a water recirculating system that will save millions of gallons of fresh water, since the fountain is no longer used for watering horses as it was when it was erected in 1905.

In his history of saving the fountain, Bill Hawkins graciously avoided naming the bureaucrats who had opposed the fountain’s restoration.  He gives the most valuable player award to Commissioner Ryan, who also sits newer, enlarged version of the City Council.

 Between you and me, let’s also thank Bill Hawkins.  Not only for his work on the fountain but for his decades of advocacy trying to encourage preservation of public art and historic sites.  Preservation lets us save the best of the past, and lets us realize that just as greatness preceded us, it can also inspire those who follow us in making Portland an interesting, vibrant city.

 ----Fred Leeson

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