Marshall County is now home to Jibey the bison. That’s the name chosen for the commemorative Bison-tennial statue unveiled Friday at the Marshall County Historical Society Museum in Plymouth.
Kathy Zentz with Heartland Artists Gallery says 11 Heartland artists spent nearly 200 hours painting the statue. She says the scenes on the five-foot tall animal depict the different communities and townships in Marshall County. His mane features the names of towns from days gone by, or places like Burr Oak and Donaldson that have shrunk considerably over the past 200 years.
Zentz says the artists also tried to stay historical with their images. For instance, the Ancilla Chapel and Culver lighthouse depicted on the bison are the original ones.
United Way of Marshall County Director Linda Yoder says the Indiana Association of United Ways Bison-Tennial Public Art Project is an approved Legacy Project through the Indiana Bicentennial Commission. It celebrates Indiana’s 200th Statehood Day on Dec. 11, 2016. Yoder says the bison was chosen due to its historical significance.
“Indiana was one of the many states that the estimated 60 million American bison inhabited and dominated in early America, with accounts of them still roaming free here as late as the 1830s,” Yoder said. “Bison were such a prominent part of the landscape and daily lives of the earliest Hoosiers that the bison has been a major component of the state seal since 1801 when Indiana was still just a territory.”
Shelley Heiden with Heartland Artists Gallery says the bison’s name, chosen by Karen Delp, reflects Marshall County’s heritage.
“It’s Potawatomi, and it means ghost or spirit.”
The bison’s white color was also selected because it is very rare and was considered sacred by local tribes.
The base on which the bison sits will feature a bronze plaque with information about the project and a list of sponsors who helped make it possible, along with a list of artists and what they painted.
