Having a picture taken next to the HHS Bulldog mascot statue is simply a part of becoming a high school student. The statue has changed over the years, but the important tradition it stands for remains consistent. The mascot has graced the front lawn for as long as anyone can remember, but it has a very interesting history associated with it.
About five years ago, HHS students were repainting the bulldog when they realized that layers upon layers of paint had covered up an inscription on the base. After some scraping and paint removal, they uncovered the sculptor’s name and location. The HHS bulldog was created by a man named Herman Morrill. Morrill lived in Carmi, Illinois where he was somewhat a “jack of all trades.” Morrill’s Welding and Auto Body Shop opened in Carmi in the early 50’s. It was here that Morrill not only fixed cars for local customers but also became a talented taxidermist and sculptor.
In an interview with the Evansville Courier Press in 1958, Morrill said that his love of art came from an early age when he was inspired by a neighbor who taught him how to oil paint. With time, that passion grew into other mediums, namely sculpture, which became Morrill’s specialty. Morrill was especially fond of sculpting animals. He noted that he spent a lot of time in nature just watching animals. He wanted his artwork to replicate the appearance of their natural look and movement.
Over time, Morrill’s Welding and Auto Body Shop began to look more like a zoo frozen in time than a car repair shop. It started to attract the attention of outsiders and locals alike. In 1957, Kellye Miller Brother’s Circus traveled through Carmi and noticed the statues outside the shop. They stopped the caravan and hired Morrill to sculpt two lions and an elephant to display outside their headquarters in Hugo, Oklahoma. The sculptures were so heavy, Morrill had to deliver them to Oklahoma.
Word of Morrill’s extraordinary body shop made it all the way to San Bernadino, California. There an article was written about Morrill and his animal-covered welding shop. This article featured the completion of one of Morrill’s biggest achievements, his concrete giraffe. The giraffe towered over the shop at over 18 feet and was built to scale in every way possible.
All of Morrill’s sculptures, including our own bulldog, were created in a very unique way. While many concrete animals are cast in molds, Morrill’s creations were actually sculpted. A wire frame was first created to give the “bones” of the animal. The concrete mixture was applied with mesh and sculpted by Morrill’s hands, much in the way a person might sculpt from clay.
The bulldog has changed in color over the years. Officially, he has been painted white, gray and spotted. However, other schools have pulled pranks over the years and painted the mascot gold, hunter green, pink, and all sorts of colors. This rival vandalism hit its peak in the 80s and 90s, when it seemed like local mascots changed colors at least once a month at the hands of opposing schools.
HHS alumni and class of 1982 graduate Mark Golish says, “I remember school rivals coming and changing the colors of the bulldog when I was in school. Then later when I worked as a custodian at the high school in the 90’s it happened again.” He recalls a time that he arrived at the school for his shift and could immediately see something different. “I could see a block down the road that the bulldog was painted bright pink,” said Golish.
Although Morrill passed away in 1998, his legacy and love for art and animals still remains. The bulldog statue that Morrill patiently and painstakingly sculpted with his own hands has been, and still is an important part of Harrisburg’s history. HHS students and staff are committed to preserving it for generations to come.
