BANGOR (AP) — A 31- foot-tall Paul Bunyan statue has stood for 56 years in Bangor, Maine. Some think it’s high time he had a companion.
Normand Martin, who designed the iconic statue, presented the city’s cultural committee on Thursday with a mock-up of a 20-foottall Babe the Blue Ox — Bunyan’s hardworking companion.
Supporters — including for city councilor Gerry Palmer — are seeking $1,000 to create an official design.
The current statute is a regular stop for tourists. Bunyan stands in Bass Park with an ax on his shoulder and a peavey — a lumberjack’s hook — in his hand.
Martin likes the idea of giving Bunyan a companion. The 89-year-old artist said Babe the Blue Ox was left off the original design because of concerns about statue’s $20,000 cost when it was erected in 1959.
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