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October 12, 1999
Nationaldesignationof HermanncontinuesBy GUY PRIEL Journal Staff Writer NEW ULM -- The statue of Hermann the German will have to endure at least one more harsh Minnesota winter before renovation takes place, as city officials seek to obtain additional funding. Work on the base of the monument, Phase 1 of a restoration project, is nearly completed. If the weather holds out, officials hope the base can also be painted this year, City Council President Dan Beranek said. Initial estimates for Phase 2, which is actual restoration of the statue that has endured 102 years of harsh Minnesota weather, came in as high as $642,000. To date, the city has received a donation of $50,000 for the project from Target when the New Ulm store was opened in July. "We are still exploring other areas to obtain funding," Beranek said. "We have met with one national fund-raising organization to date and were supposed to meet with another one from North Carolina, who was prevented from coming because of the flooding." The goal of meeting with national fund-raising organizations is to determine whether or not it makes sense to conduct a national, or even an international, fund-raising effort. "We have heard from three firms who are interested in doing the work of restoration (which will require removal of the statue from the base)," Beranek said. "We are basically in the discovery phase at this point to determine the cost range and see if we can get a better price than originally quoted." City officials are also looking into the possibility of making an attempt to get state funding for Phase 2. They obtained a $40,000 grant through the State Capital Projects Grants-In-Aid Program for Phase 1 work. A recent application was filed for a grant of $70,000 from the program that can be applied toward the project. "It is a national symbol and has significance for more than just the city of New Ulm," Beranek said. "With that idea in mind, it should be easier to get state funding. It is a slow process." State legislators will be attending a reception at the park on Oct. 20 to see completed restoration efforts and to get an idea of what remains to be done, City Manager Dick Salvati said. "It makes sense to have elected officials see the monument because state money was involved in the project," he said. In April, Rep. David Minge introduced House Concurrent Resolution No. 89 to give national designation to the statue as a symbol of the contributions of Americans of German heritage. The resolution is currently in the House subcommittee on National Parks and Public Lands, a division of the committee on Resources, where it is awaiting more co-sponsors, Minge's Press Secretary Jason Kelly said. "It is going pretty well and we currently have 33 co-sponsors," he said. "When we get a significant number, say 100, we will then be able to make progress." The co-sponsors include Minnesota members of the House of Representatives; 27 other House members and and the delegate from Guam. "Most of the co-sponsors so far are people (Minge) has talked to during recesses and breaks," Kelly said. If the resolution is passed, Hermann will obtain official historical recognition by the United States Congress. THe designation might help the city obtain additional funding for the project, City Council Member Denis Warta said. In an attempt to gather more co-sponsors for the resolution, Minge sent a letter to his Congressional colleagues on Oct. 6, the 13th anniversary of the first German-American Day Proclamation, stating the historical significance of Hermann and requesting them to co-sponsor the resolution and honor their constituents of German descent. In August, Hermann was named as an official project of the Save America's Treasures Program, a joint venture between the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the United States Department of the Interior. The program was launched to help preserve historic sites, monuments, buildings and structures to help make them official as a way to gain funding for restoration and preservation. Being named an official project does not guarantee funding, but it does make it easier to obtain funding from private sources, National Trust Spokesperson Melissa Augustana said. Hermann, at 32 feet, is the second largest free-standing copper statue in the United States. The statue was commissioned at the Sons of Hermann Convention in Philadelphia in 1885, who determined that a monument should be erected to honor the contributions of Germans in building America. Hermann the Cheruscan was chosen because he is acknowledged as the liberator of Germany from the tyranny of Rome during the first century. In America, Hermann came to be recognized as a symbol of the struggle of German immigrants who first settled the land. He symbolized pride in having reached the shores of America and helping establish a future in a new country. The current monument, designed after a similar one in Germany, was built in Salem, Ohio in 1897. It was later erected on the hill overlooking the growing community of New Ulm, despite protests from residents of Milwaukee, Philadelphia and other larger cities who wanted the monument.
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