The End of the Trail Sculpture: An Iconic Symbol
Reflecting the Struggles and Resilience of Native American People & the End of an Era
Above Photo Credit: Carol M. Highsmith, CC BY 4.0, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, Cropped
The End of the Trail Sculpture: An Iconic Symbol
Reflecting the Struggles and Resilience of Native American People and the End of an Era
Above Photo Credit: Carol M. Highsmith, CC BY 4.0, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, Cropped
The “End of the Trail” is a significant sculptural work created by American-born artist James Earle Fraser. It depicts a Native American and his horse, both weary in body and spirit at the end of their journey. This image has become one of the most recognizable in the United States [1][2].
Popularity of The End of the Trail Imagry
The “End of the Trail” image, created by American sculptor James Earle Fraser, has become an iconic symbol in the United States. This image depicts a weary Native American man on horseback, symbolizing the end of the Native American way of life as it was known [7][8]. Here are a few reasons for its popularity:
Above Photo Credit: Unidentified photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Above Photo Credit: Unidentified photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, Cropped
About James Earle Fraser & The End of the Trail Sculpture
Fraser was born in Winona, Minnesota, and spent much of his childhood on the Great Plains in Mitchell, South Dakota². The sculpture was more than just a piece of art for Fraser, but a meaningful reminder of his childhood spent on the American frontier [1].
Fraser created the original bronze version of “End of the Trail” in 1894. He was inspired by numerous exhibits depicting the American Indian and by his childhood memories. In 1898, he won the John Wanamaker prize at the American Artists Association exhibition in Paris with this piece [2].
Fraser reworked his “End of the Trail” sculpture numerous times in preparation for an eighteen-foot-tall monumental version of the work created in plaster exclusively for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, California. From 1912 to 1913, Chief John Big Tree of the Seneca tribe served as a model in Fraser’s New York studio, posing for “End of the Trail” as well as for the famed “buffalo” nickel [2].
After the exposition, Fraser wished to have his work cast in bronze. However, when the United States entered into World War I in 1917, bronze became very scarce, and the majority of sculptures that had been exhibited at the expo were deposited into a mud pit in Marina Park. Fraser made several attempts to locate his sculpture in order to obtain a copyright for the image and to cast the work in bronze. His attempts were unsuccessful, and he assumed the piece to be destroyed [2].
In the meantime, residents of Tulare County, California, rescued and restored it and placed it in Mooney Grove Park in Visalia, California. In 1968, the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City acquired the plasterwork. It remains on exhibit at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma [2].
James Earle Fraser is renowned for several significant works beyond his iconic “End of the Trail.” Fraser’s works, while celebrated for their artistic merit, often reflect the complex and sometimes problematic narratives of their time.
Some of Fraser’s most notable works include:
In recent years, some of Fraser’s works have become controversial and have been removed from public display. One prominent example is the statue of Theodore Roosevelt that stood in front of the American Museum of Natural History in New York. This statue depicted Roosevelt on horseback, flanked by a Native American man and an African man on foot. Critics argued that the statue symbolized racial hierarchy and colonialism³. In 2020, the museum decided to remove the statue due to its controversial nature [5].
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