Riding into the Sunset facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Riding into the Sunset
Casting in Claremore, Oklahoma
Artist	Electra Waggoner Biggs
Year	1942 (1942)
Type	Bronze sculpture
Dimensions	2.87 m × 0.91 m × 1.78 m (9 ft 5 in × 3 ft × 5 ft 10 in)
Location	Will Rogers Memorial Center, Fort Worth, Texas (original casting)

Riding into the Sunset is a bronze sculpture created by Electra Waggoner Biggs. It shows the famous entertainer Will Rogers riding his horse, Soapsuds. There are four copies, called castings, of this sculpture. You can find them in Fort Worth, Texas, Claremore, Oklahoma, Lubbock, Texas, and Dallas, Texas.

Amon G. Carter, a friend of Will Rogers, asked for the sculpture to be made in 1937. This was after Rogers passed away in 1935. Electra Waggoner Biggs first used Soapsuds, the real horse, as her model. But she wanted to make sure the horse's body looked perfect. So, in New York City, she hired a police horse and a model. She even had a veterinarian check her work to make sure the horse's body was just right.

The Different Sculptures

Fort Worth, Texas

The very first Riding into the Sunset sculpture was put up in 1942. It stands at Amon Carter Square in front of the Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas. Amon Carter built this center. It is an indoor arena used for rodeos, horse shows, and other events.

Claremore, Oklahoma

Oklahoma's Will Rogers Memorial has a museum about Will Rogers. It also has a garden where he is buried. The Riding into the Sunset sculpture here was first near the museum's entrance. Later, it was moved to stand beside his tomb. From there, it looks out over the city of Claremore.

Lubbock, Texas

Riding into the Sunset
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Casting on the campus of Texas Tech University
Location	Lubbock, Texas
Built	1950
Sculptor	Electra Waggoner Biggs
Part of	Texas Technological College Historic District (ID96000523)
Added to NRHP	1996

The Amon G. Carter Foundation gave a copy of the sculpture to Texas Tech University in 1950. Amon Carter was the first leader of the university's board when it started in 1923. The sculpture is now in Amon G. Carter Plaza at the university's main entrance.

When Will Rogers visited Lubbock in 1926, he gave money to the Texas Tech University Goin' Band from Raiderland. This helped the marching band travel to a football game. At the sculpture's dedication on February 16, 1950, Carter said Will Rogers felt at home in Lubbock. He believed the statue was a great monument for the students and teachers. In 1996, Riding into the Sunset was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it is recognized as an important historical object.

Campus Legend and Traditions

There is a fun campus legend about the sculpture's position. People say it was meant to face west, so Will Rogers would look like he was riding into the sunset. But if it faced west, Soapsuds's rear would face downtown Lubbock. Some thought this might upset local businesses.

To fix this, the sculpture was turned a bit to the east in the late 1960s. This supposedly made Soapsuds's rear face towards Texas A&M University in College Station. After the Texas Tech Red Raiders football team beat the Texas A&M Aggies 13–9 in 1969, the sculpture was found covered in maroon paint. Maroon is Texas A&M's school color.

After this act of vandalism, a student group called the Saddle Tramps started a tradition. They wrap the statue in red crepe paper before every home football game. This helps protect the sculpture. Riding into the Sunset has also been covered in black crepe paper. This happens to remember sad national events, like the September 11 attacks.

Dallas, Texas

A copy of Riding into the Sunset from 1989 is in Dallas. It is outside the Hilton Anatole hotel. The hotel's builder, Trammell Crow, gave this sculpture and several others to the hotel.

Images for kids

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  Amon Carter Square, Will Rogers Memorial Center, Fort Worth, Texas

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  Will Rogers Tomb, Will Rogers Museum, Claremore, Oklahoma

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  Riding into the Sunset vandalized following a football game