From left: Lindenwood's own version of Seaman, painted by a student. Photo by Daniel Bell-Nguyen

DANIEL BELL-NGUYEN | Reporter

The City of St. Charles is celebrating its 250th anniversary with statutes of Lewis and Clark’s dog, Seaman, scattered around town, including one on campus.

There were several ideas pitched of how to celebrate St. Charles’ sestercentennial, but the Newfoundland dog was selected for its role in the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

“Seaman was chosen because he was Lewis and Clark’s companion and they played such an important role in the history of St. Charles,” said Beth Norviel, the public information manager for St. Charles.

It is believed that Seaman was purchased by Merriwether Lewis for $20 while in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

All of the Seaman figures are unique in design and concept and 25 of them are scattered around the St. Charles area.

“There is no record as to why Lewis selected a Newfoundland—whether it was simply a dog that caught his attention or whether he selected Seaman because the breed is known for being smart and strong with good swimming ability. Either way, we are excited to welcome Seaman around the City as part of our celebration,” Norviel said.

Local businesses in the area were able to purchase a statue and be a part of the program. Each business could choose their own artist and theme to paint their statue.

One of the Seaman dog statues is located on Lindenwood’s campus at the Alumnae Gate entrance, representing university pride with its black and gold colors and lion-like resemblance.

Nina Stewart, a graduate student in the studio art program, was chosen to paint the Seaman statue on campus. Stewart said it took her about 2 weeks to complete the project.

“The whole thing was a celebration of St. Charles, and Lindenwood wouldn’t be here without St. Charles,” Stewart said.

Stewart said the other statues were painted with collages of things, but she wanted hers to be “crystal clear and represent Lindenwood.”

The Seaman statues are expected to be up until January 2020. The locations of the statues can be found on this map: