The Soul Pole, carved by Garfield High School students in 1969, will return to the Douglass-Truth Branch
The Soul Pole will once again stand tall at the Douglass-Truth Branch at 23rd and Yesler! After being deinstalled in April 2021 because of deterioration, the historic artwork has been evaluated and a conservation plan developed to repair, stabilize and protect it. Conservation work on the Soul Pole has been completed and it will be reinstalled in the first quarter of 2022 at its spot on the Douglass-Truth lawn. Visitors will notice almost no difference in the sculpture, but it has been prepared to withstand several more decades of exposure to Seattle weather.
The Library knows how important the Soul Pole is to our patrons and neighbors. We hope to celebrate the return of the historic sculpture with you in 2022, once it is safe to do so. Also, we continue to be interested in information on the sculptors of the Soul Pole, five of whom who were youth associated with the Rotary Boys’ Club when it was carved in 1969. We think that most or all of the youth were students at Garfield; their names were Brenda Davis, Cindy Jones, Gregory Jackson, Larry Gordon and Gaylord Young. If you have information to share, please contact Elisa Murray at SPL, at elisa.murray@spl.org. The Library is grateful to the Black Heritage Society of Washington State for their support and guidance during this project.