Equestrian Statue Dedication Date to be held on Saturday, April 21, 2007, will be a major international celebration. This event will kick-off the 409th anniversary of our nation's First Thanksgiving, which took place on April 30, 1598, near San Elizario (26-miles east of El Paso, Texas). On that date, the weary colonists, led by Don Juan de Oñate, observed a solemn mass and held a Thanksgiving Feast to give thanks to God for their safe arrival across the arid deserts of Chihuahua to the banks of the Rio Grande. Here, they watered their stock, replenished supplies and set-up temporary camp before preceeding on the long journey across the Journey of Death (La Jornado del Muerto) to the enterior of the new Province of New Mexico.

The Equestrian Depicts Don Juan de Oñate, Spanish colonizer, at The Pass of the North, holding aloft La Toma, which was the document that heralded the taking of the land for the King of Spain. Oñate introduced Spanish settlement and the horse to the American Southwest. He also founded El Camino Real (The Royal Road) that linked Mexico City to Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The World's Largest Equestrian Bronze Installed in El Paso at the entrance of El Paso International Airport on October 31, 2006 by Eagle Bronze Foundry with the assistance of sculptor, John Sherrill Houser, and Ethan Taliesin Houser, associate sculptor. The installation (a seven day process) was covered by the press, including the PBS Television documentary team. The 36-foot monument is mounted on an 8-foot base. The Airport is now making site enhancements (lighting, landscaping, etc). A red granite veneer hopefully will cover the monument's base to enhance the base and maintain the quality of the classicial bronze.

El Paso Arrival: On Friday, April 28 2006, the huge statue (in large bronze sections) arrived at the El Paso International Airport from the Eagle Bronze Foundry in Lander, Wyoming. Eagle Bronze Foundry hosted a public viewing of the pre-assembled statue in Apri before the work was trucked to El Paso. For serval weeks, prior to installation (October 31, 2006), the segmented statue was stored in El Paso in a large airport hanger where it was subsequently joined together and transported a short distance to the site where it was erected on the newly completed base. 

Spanish Consul Views The Equestrian: On Thursday, May 4, 2006, Sr. Julio Montecino, General Consul of Spain (Houston, Texas), and members of El Club de España members and the XII Travelers Board and airport staff visited the airport hanger (temporary storage location)  to view the recently arrived statue (in segments) that depicts the Spanish colonizer, Don Juan de Oñate. This event took place on the 408th anniversary (to the day!) of Oñate's crossing at the Pass of the North (El Paso, Texas and Cd. Juárez, Chihuahua). The Consul, Mr. Sheldon Hall (Honorary Consul of Spain) and the others were impressed with the quality and scale of the work. 

Worldwide Media: See site map "Selected Publications". The making of the statue (over nine years) was featured in the international media: ABC (Spain), London Sunday Times, New York Times, CNN TV, Der Spiegel (Germany), La Jornada (Mexico City), Houston Chronicle, National Sculpture Review, Univisión Televisión, Telemundo TV, The Independent (London), Algemeen Dagblad (Netherlands), Reuter World New, etc.

Commitment to Inform: Since the initiation of the statues - The Equestrian (Don Juan de Oñate) and Fray García de San Francisco, Founder of the Pass of the North, 1659 (first two monuments in the XII Travelers series (selected & commissioned by the city), the artist and the XII Travelers non-profit board have continuously informed the public of the sculptures' development. This has been done, on a regular basis, by media reports, press releases and interviews (print, television & radio), as well as in progress reports to the XII Travelers Review Committee, City Aviation Board, TIF Board, City Council, and to sponsors, donors and philanthropic organizations. In addition, the public was also informed by the XII Travelers Newsletters and Website and gallery exhibitions and fund-raising events. Special articles in newspapers and magazines were authored by the project sculptor (Monument Markers) and project staff. Several events took place in the enlarging studios (El Paso & Mexico City) in which hundred attended, as well as the inspection tour at the airport hanger and the installations of both monuments. The public and media resources were invited to review the work at the foundries (Los Angeles, CA, Tesuque, NM, and Lander, WY.

CITY & PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP HONORED

Acknowledgement of a Successful Partnership: The city of El Paso has the colossal equestrian bronze thanks to the successful partnership forged between the city of El Paso, individuals, corporate sponsors, philanthropic organizations and the XII Travelers board.

Appreciation of City Support:  The city of El Paso (Department of Aviation) generously allocated $700,000 or 40% (generated from airport revenue funds and not local tax monies) to the creation of the equestrian monument .

The Robert E. and Evelyn McKee Foundation of El Paso is the major private sector donor to The Equestrian (Don Juan de Oñate monument). The foundation generously contributed over $400,000 to the project as a gift to the city of El Paso. To acknowledge this magnanimous contribution, the City of El Paso and the XII Travelers Board will dedicate the statue in honor of Robert E. and Evelyn McKee, who generously contributed to the cultural and physical development of the city of El Paso and the region. That legacy continues in the many civic programs that the foundation actively nutures and suppport today.

FROM EL PASO TO SPAIN: In the fall of 1996, immediately following the installation of the Fray García monument, sculptor John Sherrill Houser initiated artistic and historical research for the Don Juan de Oñate statue. In 1993, the city council specfically commissioned a statue to commemorate Don Juan de Oñate. The artist created a concept maquette (clay sketch) in his El Paso studio.

FROM SPAIN TO EL PASO: The sculptor traveled to Spain  where he sculpted a bust of Don Manuel Gullón y de Oñate (Conde de Tepa), collateral descendant of Don Juan de Oñate, and a long time friend of El Paso, Texas. Don Manuel previously had participated, as an Honored Guest of the City of El Paso, in The First Thanksgiving festivities and other historical commemorations offically sponsored by the city and the El Paso Mission Trail Association. He was a most gracious host to the sculptor and introduced him to the Crown Prince of Spain, Don Felipe de Borbón, who became an enthusiastic supporter of the statue's development. In addtion, Spanish government officials, historians, museum curators and experts of 16th century armour and horse tack eagerly conferred with the sculptor to assist an accurate depiction of the Founder of the Spanish Southwest. Don Manuel personally took the sculptor to Pueblo Onati, in northern Spain, which is the place of origin of the Oñate family. Upon his return to El Paso, the sculptor found Helicon, the large and impressive Andalusian Stallion, who became the model for Oñate's horse. In 1998, the artist completed the monument's small-scale model which was enthusiastically approved by the city of El Paso.

FROM MEXICO TO NEW MEXICO: In 1998, the sculptor and Ethan Taliesen Houser,  associate sculptor, traveled to Mexico City where special enlarging studio was constructed. For the next seven years, with the assistance of Mexican technicians, the 33-inch maquette was transformed into the the full-scale 36-foot high enlargement. During 2004-2005, nearly 500 molds of the enlargement were transported north along El Camino Real (founded by Don Juan de Onãte) to Shidoni Foundry (near Santa Fe, New Mexico) where the huge work was cast into bronze.

FROM WYOMING TO EL PASO: In the last week of April 2006, the large bronze sections, were transported by flatbed trucks to the El Paso International Airport where they were  placed in temporary storage in a large airport hanger. There, the large bronze segments were permanetly joined together to become The World's Largest Equestrian Bronze. On October 31, 2006, the equestrian statue was fully installed on the 8-foot high base at the entrance of the El Paso International Airport to be subject to site enhancements such a landscaping, lighting, etc. The monument will be dedicated on Saturday, April 21, 2007.