Louis Southworth  

2022, Waldport, Oregon 

Louis Southworth was an African American slave who was brought to Oregon in 1853. He was able to buy his freedom with money he earned from playing the fiddle. He settled a Donation Land Claim in Waldport in 1880 where he was instrumental in establishing Waldport’s first public school. He donated land for the schoolhouse and served on the schoolboard. During his long and fruitful life, he worked as a musician, blacksmith, soldier, ferryman, horse trainer, and farmer. He died in Corvallis in 1917.
In his honor, Waldport Oregon commissioned a bronze statue to be placed at the entrance of
Louis Southworth Memorial Park.  

 

 

Process shot: sculpting Southworth in clay 

 

OPB: Oregon Art Beat