The Black Hawk Statue, or The Eternal Indian, is a sculpture by Lorado Taft that rests 125 feet above the Rock River. It is 48 feet high and is 536,770 pounds of concrete (composite of cement and pink granite chips) and is said to be the second largest concrete monlithic statue in the world. The statue wears a long blanket and stares across the river with folded arms. It is not a depiction of any one Indian tribe but a tribute to all American Indians. The sculptor wanted to depict the image of an American Indian looking out over his lost land. The statue creation started in 1908 and was dedicated in 1911, celebrating its 100th year.
Blackhawk Statue
View of Blackhawk Statue from the other side of the Rock River.
We had some beautiful sunsets in Rockford.
After leaving Rockford we spent a few days in Lafayatte Indiana. We have a new (6 month old) great niece we saw for the first time. Dahlia is as cute as can be. She is a very good baby, hardly ever crys, is a great eater and occassionally smiled for us. My kind of kid!!
Dahlia likes her carrots (yuk) almost as much
as Grandma likes feeding her.
Dahlia was content because she couldn't see who
was holding her.
She's a cutie with beautiful auburn hair...
and a lot of it!
We were able to see the whole family at a dinner coordinated by our sister-in-law, Terri. We ate at the Buttery Shelf Eatery. The owner of the restaurant supports a homeless shelter in town. The proceeds from the restaurant fund the shelter and she employs individuals with special needs. After a 5 course meal consisting of a vegetable/dip tray, french onion soup, 2 choices of green salad, pot roast with potatoes and carrots or roasted chicken breast with dressing and of course dessert, we posed for a "family picture" on the front steps.
L-R Ron's brother Bob holding Dahlia, our sister-in-law - Terri (Grandma), Steve (Dahlia's Dad and our nephew), Andrew (our nephew & author) and his wife Victoria (also a writer), Ron (not pictured is Dahlia's Mom - Karen)
We are really proud of our nephew, Andrew, who just had his first book published. A series of short stories - "Naked Summer"! Shortly after publishing his book it peaked at No. 2 on the "Hot New Releases in Short Stories" on Amazon.com, two spaces ahead of Stephen King.
We really enjoyed watching the Lafayette All-Stars play against the world renowned " King & His Court" a 4 man softball team that started in 1946. They are touring across North America in their final season after 65 years and 13,000 games. Ron's brother, Bob played 1st base for the All-Stars along with other community leaders & local businessmen & women.
Leaving Prophetstown State Park were we stay when in the Lafayatte area, we had a one night stay in Shepherdsville, KY then arrived at Seven Point Campground in Hermitage, TN just a few miles east of Nashville.
Our cozy little spot.
This is our 3rd trip here and we finally have tickets to a concert at the Grand Ole Opry. We have a list of 14 other things to do while we are here for 5 days. Needless to say we will have to make another trip in the future to exhaust our list. Plus I'm ready for some down time. The park we are staying in is a Core of Engineer park located on the J. Percy Priest Lake. It is quiet with an asphalted road which is great for walking. It is nicely wooded....the bad news is no satellite reception....the good news is the shade keeps the temperature in the coach at least 10 degrees cooler. And since this part of the country, like so much of the rest, is having an unbearable heat wave...shade is good.
Still trying to make our way to Red Bay, Alabama. Our coach repair list now numbers15 items, with the last one added our water pump that failed to work the other day when I turned it on. Ugh!!!! Always something, but I guess the timing is right since we are in route to the manufacturer.
Will post more as we tour Nashville.
Hope all is well!
