Mark Bennett: Artist Bill Wolfe capturing spirit of 19th-century heroes Lincoln, Herbert

Jul. 30—A gathering of the subjects of Bill Wolfe's sculptures and murals would be a sea of talent, gumption and courage.

The group photo would go viral, too.

Poet Max Ehrmann and baseball Hall of Famer Max Carey could discuss the serenity of playing center field. Aviation pioneer Orville Wright could discuss flight with basketball legend Larry Bird. They'd be surrounded by soldiers, fallen police officers, a saint, fighter pilots, labor activist Eugene V. Debs and businessman Tony Hulman, Olympians, fellow artists, the namesakes of Vigo County and the city of Vincennes, sports greats, academics, authors, revolutionaries, philanthropists and presidents. Wolfe has depicted them all in stunning fashion, commemorating historic figures in bronze or paint on walls across five states.

Wolfe is now 67 years old and retired, sort of. His list of subjects continues to grow. A handful of new Wolfe sculptures coming soon includes a 7-foot-tall bronze likeness of Abraham Lincoln for the city of Kalamazoo, Michigan, and an artistic top for the soon-to-be-refurbished Claude Herbert monument in downtown Terre Haute, among others. Lincoln delivered a speech in Kalamazoo on Aug. 27, 1856. Herbert, a teenage Spanish-American War veteran portraying Santa Claus, rescued several kids and adults from a horrific department store fire on Dec. 19, 1898.

"Things are getting busier than ever," Wolfe said Tuesday, sitting beside a maquette of his upcoming Lincoln statue on a table inside Macksville Coffee in West Terre Haute.

His Lincoln sculpture is scheduled to be dedicated on Aug. 27, 2023 — the 167th anniversary of his speech in Kalamazoo — and represents a decade-long effort by that community in southern Michigan. A nonprofit corporation, the Kalamazoo Abraham Lincoln Institute, was formed to handle the project and fund it through private donations. The city approved the location for the statue in Bronson Park, close to the actual spot Lincoln spoke to a crowd estimated at nearly 10,000 people — nearly twice the town's population then. Donations came "from a variety of sources," Institute board member Gary Swain said by phone Tuesday.

The fundraising activities included a Lincoln penny drive by Kalamazoo schoolchildren.

It all resulted in "well over $100,000" in funds raised to fulfill the nonprofit's commitment to fund sustaining maintenance of the sculpture, as well as its design, preparation, assembly and pedestal, Swain said.

Clearly, Kalamazoo's Lincoln moment matters to the townspeople.

"This was the only occasion that Lincoln ever set foot in the state of Michigan," Swain explained. "That's quite a distinction for the city of Kalamazoo."

The opportunity to capture that piece of history in bronze is quite a distinction for Wolfe, as well. A committee chose Wolfe last month from an initial field of 17 artists from across the nation. The three finalists included Wolfe and artists from California and Maryland. Wolfe and his wife, Marina, gave a presentation to the committee, accompanied by a maquette — a small-scale version of his planned statue.

"Bill did the best job of capturing Lincoln's likeness," Swain said.

Wolfe — a native of Clinton who's worked from studios in his hometown, Terre Haute and West Terre Haute — felt honored. "I'm a country boy. I'm a Hoosier. And I think it's amazing ... that I was up against sculptors from all over the country," Wolfe said.

Statue Stories Chicago, a history website, estimates there are more than 200 Lincoln statues in the country, including a sculpture by Wolfe placed at the Clark County Courthouse in Marshall, Illinois, in 2009. "It's hard to find someone to do something with Lincoln, and Bill did that," Swain said.

Wolfe's clay maquette shows a clean-shaven Lincoln gesturing to the crowd with one hand and clutching his notes against his chest at the end of his speech, which lasted 16 minutes, according to the Kalamazoo Public Library. Wolfe crafted the pose on purpose.

"He was speaking about something close to his heart — anti-slavery," Wolfe said.

Lincoln was little known outside of Illinois at the time. He was one of several speakers supporting John C. Fremont, the new Republican Party's first presidential candidate. Lincoln's topic, though, was his opposition to the expansion of slavery through the Kansas-Nebraska Act proposed by Illinois Sen. Stephen Douglas — Abe's political rival.

Four years later, Lincoln won the presidency, carrying Michigan with 57% of the vote. The state backed him again in 1864 with nearly 54% of the vote. Wolfe's statue will be a lasting reflection of Michigan's continued "high regard for Lincoln," Swain said.

Back in Terre Haute, Wolfe's artistic cap and the refurbished Claude Herbert monument will be relocated to the northeast corner of the Fifth Street and Wabash Avenue intersection this fall, most likely in September, Mayor Duke Bennett said Tuesday.

"I think it's going to end up being a nice looking thing," Bennett said, "and it's neat to keep that story alive for people to learn."

Herbert was just two days into his job portraying Santa Claus at the Havens & Geddes department store at Fifth and Wabash, when an incandescent light bulb popped in a display window and set off an inferno, according to an account by historian Mike McCormick. Herbert led several children and store coworkers out of the building, making multiple trips, still in character. He never emerged from his last entry. Witnesses said he leapt from a window, trying to escape. His remains were found three days later.

The monument is the third of three dedicated to his memory and formerly placed at Fifth and Wabash. The first two were destroyed by a runaway carriage and an automobile. The third, made of granite, was also hit by a car and moved to the lawn between City Hall and the Vigo County Courthouse in 1980. It was removed to be restored. The project's budget is between $35,000 and $40,000, and includes the site preparation and lighting, as well as Wolfe's new cap.

It's an abstract depiction of wings swirling upward, a new twist in style for Wolfe. He calls it "Ascending Soul," a reference to Herbert's heroic end.

Herbert and Lincoln, no doubt, would have a lot to talk about in that reunion of Bill Wolfe subjects.

Mark Bennett can be reached at 812-231-4377 or mark.bennett@tribstar.com.