That infamous totem pole at Livermore’s Centennial Park got its nose out of joint recently, but city officials performed immediate surgery as soon as an observant local resident notified it of the damage.
The eagle that rests atop the towering redwood totem pole had lost its beak – presumably due to high winds or perhaps after being hit by a high-flying ball or other object, said Jeff Shafer, the city’s maintenance manager. Fortunately, Shafer said, the dangling beak itself remained in one piece and was easily reattached.
“We’re not sure how it got knocked off, but were able to put it back on with glue and minor screws to make sure it stays in place,” Shafer said. “There had been a repair several years ago to the beak; we went in and re-secured it.”
Shafer said he’ll develop a proposal for review of the pole and its maintenance needs.
“Based on this incident, I am asking to have the pole looked at,” Shafer said. “I want to look at the entire structure, the high beam holding it up on the back side, the base, and the (eagle) wings, to make sure everything is secure.”
Damage to the beak was the subject of a Facebook post on the Livermore Rants and Raves page. A resident called the city on March 5 informing it of the damage to the beak and crews were out the next morning to fix it.
The totem pole has a quirky history, to say the least. Most famously, it’s associated with lingering claims of a curse on the city’s sewer system placed by Adam “Fortunate Eagle” Nordwall, the American Indian who carved the 18-foot-tall pole out of a redwood tree and gave it to the city in the 1970s to help commemorate its 100th birthday. Nordwall says he imposed the curse during a City Council meeting in 1973 because he was upset that the city had “desecrated” his artwork by lopping several feet from the bottom of the totem pole for placement in the park.
The severed piece was soon reattached after – at least according to Nordwall’s version of the story — sewers near a councilman’s house had backed up. Some council members later said they didn’t take the curse seriously but wanted to correct what had been a city mistake in severing the pole.
In May 1974, after the severed piece of pole was reattached, Nordwall blessed the totem pole during a community celebration at which some Native Americans danced in full costume. However, Nordwall says he never lifted the curse because he never got an official apology from the city. He admits the whole thing is half in jest and half serious.
But Livermore Mayor John Marchand said Friday that he has found evidence that the curse was, in fact, lifted during a totem pole during a birthday celebration in 1995. That ceremony was held after the city refurbished the badly weathered pole with a termite treatment and by giving it a new coat of paint and protecting it with sealant. With four toots from his sundance whistle, Nordwall called on the good spirits to bless, purify and cleanse the totem pole.
Marchand produced a San Ramon Valley Times newspaper story dated Sept. 17, 1995, with Nordwall saying he was finally satisfied and adding, “I have lifted the curse.”
Nordwall, reached at the reservation where he lives in Fallon, Nev., said he doesn’t recall making such a statement.
The 3,000-pound totem pole depicts Robert Livermore, the city’s namesake, sitting in the lap of the eagle protecting the community. It also has a farmer holding grapes, signifying the wine country; and a beaver holding an atom, signifying the hard work of atomic energy associated with the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. At the bottom, there are 10 rings, each to mark a decade of the city’s existence as of its centennial.