Tenny DeWitt Artwork

Floyd (Tenny) DeWitt, son of Mr. & Mrs. Floyd DeWitt, raised in Wolf Point, Montana on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation had an early exposure to horses, the subject matter that along with abstract figures became the focus of his sculpture. Using sketchbook and his talent for drawing he began as a young man studying the interaction between horse and their cowboy and Indian riders.

After lengthy discussions, between Wolf Point resident Bess Hovey and sculptor Floyd T. DeWitt, the conclusion was that the people of this area would appreciate a sculpture showing “homage” to the American Indians and the community’s pioneers and founders.

[Tenny DeWitt statue] With backing from the Wolf Point Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture, and several individuals (W.E. (Dutch) Schreiber, R.I. (Bob) Penner, and L.R. (Bob) Hovey) spear heading a financial drive, Mr. DeWitt was commissioned to do the work in his Amsterdam, Netherlands studio. Market value of the sculpture is in excess of $35,000 but the completed work was obtained at roughly half its value. Along with several local contributors, a portion of the funding came from the Montana Bicentennial Commission obtained through the City of Wolf Point.

The statute entitled “Homage” was unveiled and dedicated at a ceremony held August 21, 1976, with Father Jim Reynolds as a featured speaker. The statute was permanently placed on Main Street in the triangle across from the Wolf Point Café. The completed work of a rider on horseback paying homage is cast in bronze and stands about eight and one-half to nine feet from the top of the rider’s head to the bottom of the base. “Homage” is designed to honor the American Indians and the pioneers and founders of this area by remembering out great heritage from the time Plains Indians roamed the prairie to the early homesteaders. According to DeWitt, the sculpture “is for all the people and my hope is that it becomes a community symbol.”

In addition, Mr. DeWitt also sculpted the permanent markers for his parents, of who are buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Wolf Point. A western mural which is still displayed in the Wolf Point Elks Club was also drawn by Mr. DeWitt in 1953.