Statue of Liberty

In 1950, a replica of the Statue of Liberty was given by Mr. and Mrs. Tom Good, pioneer ranch couple, in memory of their son Jake who passed away in 1928, to the Boy Scouts of America.  The statue was placed on the lawn of the City Auditorium in Big Spring, Texas. It was dedicated to the National BSA theme of "Strengthen The Arm of Liberty."  This was the first such statue to be erected in Texas.  Another replica of the statue was erected on the lawn of the Texas State Capitol in Austin.  Shown at the left is that replica, the same as the one located in Big Spring.

The statue was mounted on a five foot base made of austin stone in the center of a huge star made of concrete edging and brick floor.  The finished statue had a total height of 13' 4", including the base.  The statue is 1/9 the size of the 151 foot statue which stands in the New York harbor. A bronze plaque, 5 x 12 inches, read "Given by Mr. and Mrs. Tom Good in memory of their son Jake" was placed on the base.  The statue was erected on the lawn of the lawn of the City Auditorium in Big Spring under the auspices of the Lone Star District of the Buffalo Trail Council.

A dedication ceremony was held at 4:30 p.m. in the City Municipal Auditorium on April 28, 1950 in Big Spring, following a parade of more than 800 Boy Scouts and leaders from 17 counties.  The speaker was Rick Fowler, a member of Governor Allan Shiver's staff.  He was introduced by Walter Morrison, a member of Troop 1, Big Springs, and who served as Scoutmaster for five years and as Assistant for ten years.  The statue was accepted by the City of Big Spring by Mayor G. W. Dabney.  The statue was unveiled by two grandsons of Mr. and Mrs. Good, Scout Wade Simpson and Pat Porter.  H. W. Lewman, Region 9 Scout Executive also made remarks during the program.

Nat Shick, Buffalo Trail Council Public Relations Chairman  said, "The statue will serve to recall to everyone the great ideals of freedom and democracy that this country of our has stood for since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It is our hope that this exact replica will remind every citizen who see it that freedom is everybody's business, every day of the year."  He went on to say that "As people drive through Big Spring on Highway 80 that each one may pause in humble humility before this symbol of Liberty and sincerely rededicate yourselves to the Democratic way of life."

For the history of the statue itself that was researched by Troop 101of Cheyenne, Wyoming, go to HERE.

NOTE: The original link to Troop 101 is no longer active. The link has been changed to the archived page found at archive.com (Wayback Machine).