2006 is the year of the Eagle, as Shandaken Eagle Day is scheduled to take place on Saturday, August 26. The theme commemorates the 20th anniversary of the Town’s 1986 dedication of the Shandaken Eagle statue at the entrance to Phoenicia on Rte. 28. Plans involve a parade, family games and contests, and plenty of music, as well as the now-traditional summer outdoor fair featuring the wares of Shandaken’s talented crafters, organizations and businesspeople, plus a variety of tantalizing food. The motto of the day is “Soaring a Score in Shandaken.”



The Story of the Eagle

The Shandaken Eagle is one of a presumed eleven matching statues that decorated the four towers of Grand Central Station from 1898 to 1910 and were originally mounted at the train terminal even earlier, in 1871. The statues were sculpted and cast by unknown craftsmen at a foundry presumed to be in mid-Manhattan during the latter part of the 19th century.



The eagles were removed when the 1898 building was razed around 1910 for the rebuilding of Grand Central Terminal, and the statues became dispersed. Their story picks up decades later, when New York Daily News photographer David McLane of Brewster inventoried the whereabouts of the eagles in places throughout the Hudson Valley and Long Island for a newspaper photo essay. He bought one of the 2-ton metal raptors for $100. A plan to donate it to Brewster fell through, and McLane, who by now had retired to Phoenicia to be near his son, offered it to Shandaken. The home was thought fitting, as Shandaken had adopted the eagle as a symbol during the nation’s 1976 bicentennial, and eagles had been sighted around the Esopus Creek. Metal sculptor Dakin Morehouse of Woodland Valley restored the deteriorating sculpture in his Phoenicia Forge, and it was installed on August 23, 1986 amid much ceremony, as well as a resolve to rededicate the Eagle every ten years.



Two decades later, the arresting monument continues to provide travelers with an intriguing first impression of Phoenicia. On Saturday, August 26, the cast iron bird provides the focus for Shandaken’s third annual summer fête. Festivities include a parade at 10:30 am, a ceremony to follow at the statue, and an all-day fair with food, booths, music and family games on St. Francis de Sales Parish Field behind Main Street. With Shandaken busy gearing up, Eagle Day promises to be one of the region’s must-do summer events. For general information, call the Shandaken Town Hall at 845 688 7165.