Father Marquette Honored During Statue Centennial Celebration

Gaspare "Perry" Calandrino of Ada won the photograph contest with his image of the Father Marquette statue during lilac time on Mackinac Island. The picture competed against 66 other entries and was unveiled Wednesday, September 9, during ceremonies marking 100 years since the statue's dedication. For the last 100 years, generations of Mackinac Island residents and visitors have looked up to the towering bronze image of 17th-century explorer and Jesuit missionary Father Jacques Marquette. This year, on a late summer evening, about 100 people gathered beneath the statue in Marquette Park to celebrate its centennial and the life of the French Jesuit priest, who established a mission in St. Ignace, worked among area tribes, and explored the Mississippi River. On Mackinac Island 339 years ago, Fr. Marquette established a mission for Huron Indians, said Phil Porter, Mackinac State Historic Parks director.

One hundred years have passed since the unveiling of the Father Marquette statue in Marquette Park on Mackinac Island. About 100 people attended the statue's centennial celebration Wednesday, September 9, marked by speeches and music. The evening weather was pleasant during the ceremony, as it was in 1909. The September 9 celebration included remarks from Mr. Porter, Mackinac Island State Park Commissioner Dennis Cawthorne, and Chief Curator Steve Brisson, and like the 1909 dedication, members of Grand Hotel Orchestra, this time led by Alex Graham, provided the music. The Mackinac Island Scout Service Camp Girl Scouts, Hart of Michigan Council, led the singing of "America." A ceremonial firing of the Fort Mackinac cannon from the bluff above the statue ended the ceremony.

People traveled for miles to attend the 1909 dedication and unveiling of the statue and they heard speakers including U.S. Supreme Court Justice William R. Day, the Reverend John Cunningham of Marquette University in Milwaukee, and Catholic and Episcopal priests.

Justice Day and Rev. Cunningham both agreed the statue would inspire future generations, said Mr. Brisson.

Quoting the words spoken by Justice Day during that afternoon ceremony 100 years ago, Mr. Brisson said, "The thousands who come from towered cities and the busy marts of trade to find health and recreation on this Island shall learn as they look upon this statue new lessons of duty, of self reliance, and that in faith of high ideals, which characterized every aspect of Jacques Marquette from early manhood to the grave."

The lifetime of Fr. Marquette was a period of great change as the region was explored and alliances were built among Native American tribes, said Mr. Brisson, and it laid a foundation for the future.

"It is good to remember and ponder those times," said Mr. Brisson. "It is good that we have such monuments to inspire us to remember. We can be grateful that the park commission and especially commissioner Peter White chose to be patrons of the arts at the beginning of the last century in order fulfill the long effort to commemorate Marquette on this Island."

Mr. White spent about 30 years spearheading fundraising efforts to erect the statue in honor of Fr. Marquette and died before his goal was reached, said Mr. Cawthorne, although a bequest in his will made it possible to reach the needed funding level to commission the statue by Gaetano Trentanove. The cost for the statue was about $6,000.

"This monument dedicated 100 years ago today endures as Mackinac Island's tribute to Marquette, explorer and missionary," said Mr. Cawthorne.

During the 1909 dedication ceremony, said Mr. Porter, the speeches alone lasted about two hours. This year, the 30-minute event included the unveiling of a photograph taken by Gaspare "Perry" Calandrino of Ada, considered the top entry in a contest that drew 66 photographs of the Fr. Marquette statue. Mr. Calandrino's photograph was taken through a purple lilac bush in full bloom. The Mackinac Associates member said he took the photograph two years ago during a stay at his family condominium near Mission Point Resort.

"I enjoy going to the state park and the fort," he said. " I like history, too, so that added to winning the award."

Honorable mention was awarded to Jenna Goodall of Black Creek, Wisconsin. A sophomore at the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire, her photograph is a lighthearted picture of her boyfriend, Mason, who appears to he holding the statue in his hand. Ms. Goodall was unable to attend the ceremony.

This year's event had special meaning for summer resident Lisa Brock, her husband, Pete Pelligrino, and her mother, Dorothy Brock. Dorothy's mother, Martha Fitzgerald, attended the 1909 dedication ceremony. Martha was born in 1888. She lived in Cheboygan and was a summer employee on the Island. She worked at Island House, said the elder Mrs. Brock, first as a waitress and then a hostess. The family attended the ceremony as a tribute to her.

This year the statue and stonework foundation were restored. Landscaping projects will take place this fall. The projects are supported by the Venus Bronze Works of Detroit, the Barbara and Frank Lewand Fund of the Mackinac Island Community Foundation, and the Michigan Knights of Columbus.