by Leonard Enos “Gus” Shafer (American, 1907-1985)

Bronze sculpture, base stamped: “85/115” and signed and dated: “1973”.

Height: 9.25”

Shafer was a “son of the Kansas prairie,” born on a farm southwest of Hoisington, Kansas. As a child, a farmhand taught him to hunt, trap and ride. Combined with the influence of his grandfather, these experiences instilled in Shafer a lasting interest in the Old West.

Shafer learned to draw while attending a small one-room schoolhouse. Following graduation from Hoisington High School in 1925, he attended Grinnell College in Iowa and Kansas State Teachers College, Emporia.

He married in 1930 and with his wife moved to Kansas City where he worked for 38 years as a commercial artist. He sculpted his first model for casting in 1966 at the age of 59. Two years later, he closed his art studio and began sculpting bronzes full time. By the time of his death he has achieved international recognition for his work.