The Iron Horse, a popular destination for tourists and University of Georgia students, is being restored this summer. The sculpture has been temporarily removed from its location along Highway 15 during the restoration process, and it will be reinstalled later this summer.
Patty Curtis and her daughter, Alice Hugel, generously gifted the sculpture and the land on which it sits to the university this year. Amy Abbe, a local conservator, assessed the 12-foot, 2-ton sculpture, and helped restore imperfections and reinforce the steel structure.
“Visiting the Iron Horse has become a great student tradition at the University of Georgia, and we are excited that this restoration project will allow students to enjoy this sculpture for many years to come,” said Dean of Students Eric Atkinson.
The Iron Horse was originally sculpted in 1954 by Abbott Pattison, a visiting artist-in-residence from Chicago who was working at UGA as part of a Rockefeller grant. He constructed the horse by welding together pieces of boilerplate steel.