Chief Kno-Tah Statue To Be Removed From Shute Park

HILLSBORO, OR — Chief Kno-Tah, the large wooden sculpture that's greeted Hillsboro visitors and residents from its station on the southeastern edge of Shute Park since 1987, is coming down, Hillsboro officials said Wednesday. A memorial service, of sorts, is set to be held Saturday, June 10, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at 750 S.E. Eighth Ave. in Hillsboro.

Chief Kno-Tah was created by Hungarian-born artist Peter 'Wolf' Toth as part of the "Trail of Whispering Giants" series, which saw Toth produce over the course of 21 years more than 65 interpreted carvings of giant Native American heads which he installed in all 50 U.S. states and Canada. But after a falling tree branch took a chunk out of the Chief's head in February following a severe winter storm, Hillsboro city officials were at odds about what to do: remove the long-standing statue or try to repair it.

While many residents advocated for repair, logic and reason demanded the statue be retired.

In a letter dated March 15, Northwest Tree Specialists' Certified Arborist Trevor March described in detail the current condition of the statue, helping to inform the city's difficult decision going forward. In his letter, March revealed the statue appeared to have long suffered deterioration from a carpenter ant infestation and exposure to the elements, ultimately resulting in March's recommendation that the statue be removed as a safety precaution.

An estimate to repair and restore the Chief provided by Cascadia Art Conservation Center in Portland came with a price tag of more than $53,000, while an estimate from Ness-Campbell Crane to lift the statue out of the park was priced somewhere in the range of $7,000 to $9,000.

"Because of the great care taken to maintain it, the Chief Kno-Tah sculpture has had a long life," Public Art Program Supervisor Valerie Otani said in a statement. "But something made out of Douglas fir — sitting outside for 30 years — has a life expectancy."

The rot has become so bad, Ness-Campbell officials wrote, that a liability waiver was requested in case the Chief "disintegrates or explodes during the lift."

"Public safety is our top priority," said Parks & Recreation Director Dave Miletich. "As much as we hoped the statue could be restored, it simply poses too much of a safety risk."

The Chief has been cordoned off by a chain link fence since shortly after being damaged out of concern it may crumble and fall, which incidentally doesn't much concern representatives of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon, who told the city to do whatever they want with the Chief in a letter dated Feb. 28.

"We do not find this carving representative of our ancestors," Cultural Resources Department Manager David Harrelson said in the letter. "While we value and appreciate the interest of Hillsboro's citizens in our ancestors, we desire that artwork and interpretation accurate to our people is available for such a purpose. We understand that this statue was one of over fifty such carvings created by the artist to bring awareness of native people. The Shute Park carving does not look like our ancestors or represent our artistic traditions."

After providing a brief history on the apparent insignificance of Chief Kno-Tah's contribution to the Tualatin Kalapuya tribe in the mid-1800s, Harrelson offered the city an alternative.

"Little is known about Kno-Tah … (and) the carving is an inaccurate representation of our ancestors," Harrelson wrote. "We would welcome the opportunity to work with the City of Hillsboro to replace this artwork or to create other installations of artwork or interpretation within the City of Hillsboro."

Despite the lack of concern expressed by the tribal leaders, city officials maintain that the Chief has been a cherished landmark and fixture in Hillsboro. So after the sculpture's removal, city officials will develop and install an information panel in Shute Park to share the history of Chief Kno-Tah and the park, officials said.

"Once again, we want to thank the countless community members who support our parks and our Public Art Program, and we want to express our gratitude to The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde for sharing their perspective on the sculpture," Miletich said. "We look forward to engaging with the Confederated Tribes to bring culturally relevant art to Hillsboro in the future."

Photo Courtesy: Travis Loose — "Chief Kno-Tah weathers the storm that would ultimately bring about his downfall. Jan. 13, 2017."