Patterned after Vatican City’s 2,000 year old “Father Nile”, our very own “Father of Waters” rests in the rotunda of the Minneapolis City Hall. This guy was carved from the largest single block of marble ever taken from the Carrara quarries in Italy. Originally commissioned for the city of New Orleans the enormous statue celebrates the landscapes the river flows through on its way from the Itasca headwaters to the Gulf of Mexico. Our big bearded father reclines on a Native American blanket and leaning against a riverboat paddle wheel holding a cornstalk. His head is crowned with a pine cone, leaf wreath. In his draped fish net an alligator and aquatic turtle join him for the journey.
In 1904 after the Crecent City balked at the price. Twelve leading citizens and the Minneapolis Journal pitched in maybe as much as $40,000 to purchase the old guy for the City of Lakes. If the “Father of Waters” ever got up to dance, he would be more than 15 feet tall. If he ever got on a scale, he would tip it at about 14,000 pounds. Fortunately, there is a column underneath him that extends all the way to the building’s foundation to support him. The statue was dedicated with a lavish ceremony in 1906. Rubbing his big toe brings good luck!
