By James Massara
CCN News Director
BUCYRUS — Eight months after being vandalized by decapitation, a new statue of Col. William Crawford was placed in its home at the Crawford County Courthouse on Thursday morning.
The granite statue, which replaced the original limestone statue that was vandalized in August, was placed by Longstreth Memorials and Byrd Vault Company.
Sean Longstreth said it was his first time during his time in the stonework profession having placed a granite statue in an alcove. He said the weight of the stone was the greatest obstacle.
Longstreth said granite was used for the new statue due to its durability.
“Granite erodes at a rate of about one-one thousandths of an inch every 100 years,” Longstreth said. “That’s about the width of a strand of hair.
“It’s strength also would make it extremely difficult for someone to vandalize the new statue in a similar way as the original.”
Longstreth did admit that some limitations came with using the more durable rock.
“It made it much harder to do some of the detail that’s in the original,” Longstreth said. “With a rock like granite, you have the benefits of durability and strength, but that strength limits how intricate you can be with the sculpting.”
He added the limestone used was weakened to the point that a person touching it could feel the stone rubbing off and deteriorating.
The original statue will receive future protection from the elements, however, as it will be housed in the Bucyrus Historical Society.
Longstreth said the process of creating the new statue began with the removal of the original statue by the same companies that installed the new one. He said his company then made a clay model of the statue, using photos to replicate the head, and sent the clay model to World Trading in China.
“Unfortunately, including shipping the statue back, it’s just so much less expensive to do it overseas, that it was the best option,” Longstreth said.
He said the new statue was made with the exact dimensions of the original, but was made in two pieces for easier transport and to save on material.
Crawford County Commissioner Mo Ressallat said a dedication ceremony will take place at a later date.