"Music of the Sea" -- Port Arthur TX - Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on Waymarking.com

Edith Smith erected this memorial sculpture fountain to her father Charles, who served as the second Mayor of Port Arthur from 1899-1901. The fountain was installed in front of the Jefferson County sub-courthouse in downtown Port Arthur in 1940. In 1962 she left additional money to the City to help with the sculpture's maintenance and repair costs.

By 2005 "Music of the Sea" was (somewhat ironically) in the way of a new Hurricane Protection infrastructure project. The city deeded the sculpture to Lamar State College, which had asked that it to be moved to its campus as part of a new historic plaza in a planned pedestrian mall.

"Music of the Sea" would be moved and reconstructed at no expense to the city, preserving an important part of Port Arthur's community history while keeping a promise made 70 years before that the memorial would be cared for by the city in perpetuity.

This statue and fountain is a worthy and historic addition to the beautiful plaza project that celebrates the intertwined history of Port Arthur and Lamar State College. It also reflects the reality that the Texas State College System has a whole lot more money available than does the city of Port Arthur, especially after Hurricanes Rita and Ike.

Source: City Council action and supporting documents approving relocation on 27 Jan 2005: (visit link)

TITLE: Music of the Sea ARTIST(S): Henry H. Kitson DATE: 1940 MEDIUM: Bronze sculpture on an engraved granite base CONTROL NUMBER: IAS TX001059 Direct Link to the Individual Listing in the Smithsonian Art Inventory: [Web Link] PHYSICAL LOCATION: Procter St at Stilwell Ave, in a pedestrian mall on the the Lamar State College campus. DIFFERENCES NOTED BETWEEN THE INVENTORY LISTING AND YOUR OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH: The statue was moved from its historic location in front of the Jefferson Sub-Courthouse to the pedestrian mall in front of Lamar State College to make way for a hurricane protection infrastructure project in 2005. The statue was also placed in larger setting with large boulders instead of a flat circular drainage area for the water coming out of the fountain. When we were there, we were not able to determine if this beautiful bronze sculpture still functions as a fountain.

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