1 Pioneer Monument – Ellen Pucell
Ellen Pucell Unthank, known to family and friends as Nellie, immigrated to Utah in 1856 with the Martin Handcart Company, one of the many parties of Mormon pioneers to settle in Utah.
During the journey, an early snowstorm ravaged the company, and Nellie’s parents were among the many who died due to cold and privation. As Nellie and her sister continued on, Nellie’s bare feet became frostbitten and the party would have died if not for a rescue party sent by Brigham Young. When she finally arrived in Salt Lake City, her legs were crudely amputated below the knee without the aid of anesthetic.
When Nellie was 24, she moved to Cedar City, married William Unthank and raised a family of very modest means, doing her part raising the children and working at odd jobs. Her community gave the struggling family a little assistance through the years which Nellie gratefully accepted, but once a year she and her children cleaned the entire Latter-Day Saint meeting house to even the score.
This statue, created by Jerry Anderson, of a youthful Nellie running across the plains of Nebraska was dedicated in 1991, here at the site of her former family home.
2 Pioneer Monument – Remembering Nellie
Southern Utah historian William R. Palmer wrote of Nellie,
“Year in and year out Nellie scarcely moved outside the limits of her own doorstep. Pain was the price of every step she took, and her physical world was bounded by the [view] from her own doorstep. Nature did not bestow uncommon beauty of form or feature upon her and circumstances denied her the advantages of education and culture, but the master sculpture, time, chiseled deep strong lines of courage, strength, patience, and kindness upon her face… [And] in that face there was no trace of bitterness or railings at her fate…For in spite of her handicap she had earned her keep and justified her existence. She had given more to family friends and to the world than she had received.”
3 Pioneer Monument – Artist: Jerry Anderson
This statue is the work of renowned Utah artist, Jerry Anderson. In the 1960’s and 70’s Anderson worked in the steel fabrication industry in southern California and during that time he also took correspondence courses from Connecticut’s Famous Artists School where he studied art fundamentals including composition, perspective, and anatomy. In 1981 he left manufacturing for good, devoting himself to art full-time. Though best known for his bronze sculptures, Anderson’s talent and craft have also been displayed in other media including painting, ink on paper, stone and wood carving, found objects and jewelry.
Mr. Anderson is responsible for many of the statues on campus including the twelve figures that ring the Centurium just south of the university’s Events Center’s main entrance.