BEMIDJI 鈥� A Native American statue that stood in downtown Bemidji for more than 61 years is on its way to a new home at the American Giants Museum along historic Route 66 in Illinois.
The statue has been stationed outside of Morell鈥檚 Chippewa Trading Post since 1963. Morell鈥檚 was then located at Second Street and Bemidji Avenue in the former Lake Shore Hotel. When that building was torn down in the early 1980s, Morell鈥檚 moved one block north to its current location, and the statue went there as well.
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The American Giants Museum opened in May 2024 in Atlanta, Ill., about 150 miles southwest of Chicago. Museum director Joel Baker purchased the statue from Morell鈥檚 owner Roxi Mann, and on Monday a crew disassembled it, placed it on a flatbed and sent it on its way to Illinois, where it will be restored and placed on one of six concrete pedestals.
Baker, who has been interested in giant roadside statues for more than 20 years, visited Bemidji in 2022 and casually mentioned an interest in purchasing the statue.
鈥淎bout a month or two ago, we started working on this plan,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淥ne thing we really do is we concentrate on each giant鈥檚 particular history, so that鈥檚 very important to me.鈥�
Baker plans to research the Bemidji statue鈥檚 history and produce a video on his . He hopes to have the statue restored and put in place later this year.
鈥淗opefully, this is the proper solution 鈥� and it can go to a place where we can discuss its history and the changes in advertising that have taken place over the years,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 good that it can be preserved and not destroyed because it is a relic of the 1960s.鈥�
The statue was created by a now-defunct company that initially built 鈥淢uffler Man鈥� statues in the 1960s for a chain of muffler shops in Texas. The company later made lumberjacks, cowboys and Native Americans, primarily to be used as advertising for a variety of businesses.
Baker learned of the Bemidji statue on the website, which includes a 鈥淢uffler Man Tracking鈥� map of giant statues throughout the United States.
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The Trust Project
