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2007 Alabama Tandem Weekend April
13-15, 2007
Enterprise, AL |
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Boll
Weevil Monument
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The Boll Weevil Monument in Enterprise, Alabama. When the citizens of Enterprise, Alabama erected a monument to the
boll weevil it was (and still is) the only monument to an agricultural pest. The boll
weevil (Anthonomus grandis) was indigenous to Mexico but
appeared in Alabama
in 1915. By 1918 farmers were
losing whole cotton
crops to the beetle. H. M. Sessions saw this as an opportunity to convert the
area to peanut
farming. In 1916
he convinced C. W. Baston, an indebted farmer, to back his venture. The first
crop paid off their debts and was bought by farmers seeking to change to
peanut farming. Cotton was grown again, but farmers learned to diversify
their crops, a practice which brought new money to Coffee County. Bon Fleming, a local businessman, came up with
the idea to build the monument, and helped to finance the total cost. As a
tribute to how something disastrous can be a catalyst to change, the monument
was dedicated on December 11, 1919 at the
intersection of College and Main Street, the heart of the town's business
district. The original statue of a woman wearing a flowing gown, arms
stretched above her head, was built in Italy for
approximately $1,800, not including the fountain and boll weevil. The boll
weevil was not added until thirty years later, when Luther Baker thought the
Boll Weevil Monument should have a boll weevil on it. He made the boll weevil
and attached it to the top of the fountain that was no longer in use. The
monument stands more than thirteen feet tall. The boll weevil, and sometimes even the entire
monument, has been stolen many times through out the years and each time was
found and repaired by the city of Enterprise until July 11, 1998. On that day
vandals ripped the boll weevil out of the statue's hands and permanently
damaged the statue. City leaders were going to repair the original statue and
put it back but it proved too difficult and costly. The replica still stands
in downtown Enterprise, and the original is on display at Enterprise’s Depot
Museum. There is a security camera nearby that monitors for further
vandalism. |
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