Tribute to the Range Rider
N 35° 29.480 W 097° 30.194
14S E 635766 N 3928561
This statue or a range rider atop a bucking bronco stands on the grounds of the Oklahoma State Capitol
Waymark Code: WMAKMA
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 01/25/2011
Views: 10
Constance Whitney Warren’s intricately detailed sculpture of a bucking bronco and a steadfast cowboy in wool chaps was the first sculpture installed on the grounds of Oklahoma’s State Capitol. Known as “a bronze tribute to the romantic riders of the range” the sculpture represents Oklahoma history as seen through the eyes of the cowboy that rode across her land on his trustee steed.
Scheduled for May 30, 1930, the initial dedication led by Governor William J. Holloway and Oklahoma Supreme Court justice Albert C. Hunt was postponed due to Will Roger’s inability to attend. The preceding governor, William H. “Alfalfa Bill” Murray was rumored to despise Mr. Rogers for his support of Democratic presidential nominee Franklin D. Roosevelt. Governor Murray ordered a tarpaulin to cover the statue and when the tarpaulin disappeared the governor issued a $500 reward for the arrest of the culprits with the exception of Will Rogers. Soon the tarpaulin was missing again. When asked about the matter Rogers jovially remarked, “It musta’ been a cyclone that did it cause that tarp was blown clean to Governor Murray’s back yard.”
The sculpture was officially dedicated 27 years later by Governor Raymond Gary on November 14, 1957.
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