LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — People from Kentucky and Utah were at the Ashland Estate Thursday to celebrate the first stop of the 43-foot Golden Spike monument. It was created by Kentucky artist Douwe Blumberg. The piece was commissioned by Utah’s Golden Spike Foundation, which recently celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Transcontinental Railroad — completed in 1869.
The foundation’s chairman, Doug Foxley, says, "Symphonies, play, art, on and on and on, and then we just decided that we ought to do something about really having a legacy through art."
The monument was created to pay homage to the countless workers who made the rail system possible and have been forgotten in history. Blumberg says he consulted a number of racial groups and organizations to understand the workers' stories.
Blumberg says, "My goal, one of my many goals, was to tell a story in a little more rounded way. And using a little more wider lens than maybe has been told before. Not just focusing on the politics, the scandals, or the financiers, because this was a huge effort that involved tens of thousands of people."
The monument will make nine more stops before it's installed at Utah’s Golden Spike Park. This project took Blumberg and a team of more than 20 others 28 months to complete. In that time, he explains, as a first-second generation Jewish American, this project has taught him more about this country.
"The research has helped me understand more about our country than I did previously. So, I think that has been a journey for me and I hope it is a journey for others,” says Blumberg.
Leaders discussed how divided our country has been as everyone came together to celebrate an industrial milestone meant to connect it. Foxley came to Lexington with his family. He says when his grandson and others from his generation see this piece, he hopes it inspires them to learn from the past and work together moving forward.
He says, "The story about diverse oftentimes despised peoples working together created a great thing and I think it's important for my 9-year-old grandson and others just to know that, hey, you may have disagreements but work together, and you can create great things."
The project’s organizers hope this spike paves the way for new paths forward. The Golden Spike Monument will be stopping in Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, and Wyoming before it makes it to Utah. There will be another tour in 2024. To learn more about the 150th anniversary of the Transcontinental Railroad, you can check out www.Spike150.org.
