Lundeberg Derby Monument, Public monument at Seattle Convention Center, United States
The Lundeberg Derby Monument stands at First Avenue and Wall Street, outside the El Gaucho Inn. It consists of stone pillars about three feet high, salvaged by artists Jack Mackie and Buster Simpson from a quarry just before it went bankrupt. On the northernmost pillar rests a derby cap, the headwear worn by members of the Sailors Union of the Pacific.
The Lundeberg Derby Monument was installed by artist Buster Simpson in 1987 as part of the First Avenue Project, a series of works to improve First Street in Seattle. The statue stands outside the El Gaucho Inn, a building then owned and occupied by the Sailors Union of the Pacific. Its pillars were salvaged by Jack Mackie and Buster Simpson from a quarry just before it went bankrupt. The monument honors Harry Lundeberg, a key figure in the Sailor's Union Strike of 1886.
The derby cap atop the northernmost pillar refers to the "Lundeberg Stetson", the sub/Union cap Lundeberg created and Sailors Union members wore. The monument stands outside the El Gaucho Inn, a building then owned and occupied by the Sailors Union, so the cap marks a union meeting place on First Avenue.
The monument stands at First Avenue and Wall Street, outside the El Gaucho Inn, on a sidewalk open to the public at any time. The three-foot pillars and the derby cap on the northernmost one are best seen on foot while walking First Avenue.
The derby atop the northernmost pillar is a cap worn by Sailors Union members, and Lundeberg himself created the sub/Union cap later called the "Lundeberg Stetson". The three-foot pillars were salvaged by artists Jack Mackie and Buster Simpson from a quarry just before it went bankrupt.
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