Thompson Elk Fountain restoration project

Water

Completed

We repaired the historic Thompson Elk Fountain and returned the statue to its original location on SW Main Street.

2025–2026

Project Overview

The Portland Water Bureau and partners restored the Thompson Elk Fountain to its historic place on SW Main Street between Chapman and Lownsdale Squares.

In July 2020, fires in the fountain base damaged pieces of the stonework. We removed the statue and fountain base soon after.

This project:

Restored and reinstalled the fountain in its original location
Increased the stability of the Thompson Elk statue
Complied with standards for the treatment of historic properties
Retrofitted the fountain with a recirculating water pump

The City of Portland and our partners is celebrating the return of the Thompson Elk statue with a free community event on Sunday, April 12, 2026.

History

The Thompson Elk Fountain was built in 1900 and named for its benefactor, David P. Thompson, who served as Portland's mayor from 1879 to 1882. The bronze elk was sculpted by Roland Hinton Perry. The statue stands 9 feet tall and weighs 3,000 pounds. The granite base and water-spouting fountain were designed and built by H.G. Wright.

This is an archival photo from 1900 of the Thompson Elk Statue. — The historic fountain served drinking water to both people and animals in downtown.

As a founding director of the Oregon Humane Society, David P. Thompson wanted to honor the wildlife that once roamed the city. The artist positioned the statue to face west, looking toward the west hills where herds of elk roamed before the city was developed. Below the statue is a two-tiered fountain originally intended to serve drinking water to both people and animals.

The elk statue has been a site of political expression since the city's early marches for women's suffrage, most recently serving as a backdrop for protests against racial inequities in 2020. The Water Bureau is proud to partner with the community to restore this beloved landmark.

Learn more about the history of the Thompson Elk Fountain

About the restoration project

Bronze elk statue

When we examined the fountain in 2020, we discovered the bronze elk statue was secured to the base by only one bolt. While the statue was not damaged, it was at risk of falling. We removed the statue and fountain base soon after. The statue was cleaned and safely stored by the Regional Arts & Culture Council while the City worked on a plan to restore the stone fountain base. We stabilized the statue when it was reinstalled in 2026.

Robert Krueger wiping down the Thompson Elk statue after a hot wax. — Conservator Robert Krueger has been maintaining the Thompson Elk statue for over 20 years!

This restoration project was the result of years of careful collaboration. Keith Lachowicz from the Regional Arts & Culture Council and Robert Krueger from Cascadia Art Conservation offered a behind-the-scenes look at the maintenance of the statue.

Recirculating fountain

In addition to restoring the fountain and returning the elk statue, we installed a recirculating water pump to improve the fountain's water efficiency. Recirculating the water in the fountain will save up to 18,720 gallons of water per day.

An overhead drone view of the construction site on SW Main Street

View full size image

The Thompson Elk site has over 100 years of city history and utility systems beneath it. During excavation, we discovered unexpected utility lines that required us to redesign the underground fountain components. We worked with a contractor from California to manufacture a new stainless-steel vault that fits with the existing underground utilities.

Historic granite restoration

Some parts of the fountain's stone base needed to be remade. To meet national standards for historic preservation, the Portland Water Bureau sourced new granite pieces from the same quarry in Barre, Vermont, that supplied the original fountain base.

Stone mason using a chisel to carve into the granite fountain base. — Stonemasons from Old World Stone Design (Rio Linda, CA) came to do final touches on the newly sourced granite pieces.

The quarry in Vermont used the original fountain base as a template to cut new slabs of granite that replaced the damaged pieces. Then they shipped the granite slabs to a stone fabricating company in Cleveland, Ohio. The stone company in Cleveland sculpted the newly cut granite to match the original base, then shipped all the pieces back to Oregon.

Designers prioritized the historic integrity of the Thompson Elk Fountain. We salvaged as many damaged granite pieces from the original stone fountain as possible. They were cleaned and repurposed as steps for the new base using a masonry technique called a dutchman repair.

Partnerships

The Thompson Elk restoration project was the result of years of careful collaboration:

Project contracting and oversight was managed by the Portland Water Bureau.
Construction was led by Cedar Mill with subcontractor Pioneer Waterproofing.
The fountain is maintained by Portland Parks & Recreation.
The bronze elk statue is managed by the Office of Arts & Culture.
The statue is maintained by the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
Funding for the design phase was raised by the Portland Parks Foundation.
The restoration design was donated by Architectural Resources Group.

Project budget

The Portland Parks Foundation raised $160,000 from 65 donors to fund the full design and engineering drawings, which were gifted to the City. This investment accelerated the restoration process by as much as a year.

In July 2023, $2.2 million was secured to fund the Thompson Elk Fountain restoration project: $700,000 from insurance and $1.5 million from the City's General Fund, as approved by City Council in the fiscal year 2023–24 budget.

In September 2024, City Council unanimously voted to accept the proposed bid of $1.79 million by Cedar Mill Construction. The contract was amended during construction to $1.875 million to include field modifications and project scope changes. Of the $2.2 million total budget, $1.875 million was allocated to construction and $325,000 to City expenses, such as staff time, contract management, and new water service field installation. The Thompson Elk Fountain restoration project was completed within budget. Any unused funds will be returned to the General Fund after the close out process is complete.

View the full procurement report for the Thompson Elk Fountain restoration project.

Watch the City Council meeting on September 18 and 19, 2024.

Project timeline

2020

Regional Arts & Culture Council and the Portland Water Bureau remove the Thompson Elk statue and fountain components for safekeeping.
Former Portland Parks board member William Hawkins calls for the restoration of the Thompson Elk Fountain and makes the first public donation to the Portland Parks Foundation, with other donations to follow.

2022

Portland Parks Foundation, the Office of Management and Finance, and City Council explore options for restoration.
Portland Parks Foundation identifies a donor to fund a feasibility study.
City Council passes a resolution to explore restoring the fountain.
Portland Parks Foundation hires Architectural Resources Group (ARG) to develop a feasibility study.

Jeff Hawthorne (City Arts) and Keith Lachowicz (Regional Arts & Culture Council) talk about the statue's importance to Portland history.

2023

Portland Parks Foundation offers to fund 100% of the design with ARG if City Council commits to the project.
City Council allocates $1.5 million in the fiscal year 2023–24 budget for the project. A total of $2.2 million is secured, with $700,000 from insurance and $1.5 million from the City's General Fund.
Portland Parks Foundation and ARG begin work on the design using $160,000 from 62 private donors.
City Council authorizes solicitation of contractor bids for construction.

2024

City Council accepts $1.79 million bid from Cedar Mill to complete construction on the Thompson Elk Fountain restoration project.
The Portland Water Bureau and Cedar Mill begin a lengthy materials acquisition process.

Jessica Green (Portland Parks Foundation) and Maya Foty (Architectural Resources Group) offer a behind-the-scenes look at what it took to bring this historic landmark back to Downtown.

2025

The Portland Water Bureau contracts with the original quarry in Vermont for granite and with a small business in California for a new fountain vault.
SW Main Street closes and on-site construction activities begin.

2026

The Thompson Elk statue was cleaned and retrofitted for a seismically stable attachment.
The Thompson Elk Fountain restoration project is completed.
Project partners celebrate the return of the Thompson Elk statue with a community event.