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Atchison City Commission Approves Statue for Noted Bricklayer

By David Meyer

04/02/2013

(KAIR) -- Atchison City Commissioners Monday night unanimously approved the planned placement of a bronze statute for the man that constructed the brick streets and sidewalks around the city.

Commissioners authorized placement of the William “Deafy” Bouler statue along the 400 block of the Commercial Street Mall.

The location was chosen largely due to his involvement later in life helping out at Fedderson’s Pool Hall, which was located in that area.

Bouler, a deaf double amputee, was noted in the January 7, 1933 edition of “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” for having laid 46,000 bricks in one 8-hour day.

Atchison Historical Society Director Chris Taylor says funding for the project, coordinated from the Riverfront Downtown Development, Project has already been set.

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Casting for the statue was done with time volunteered by former resident Aleta Howard.

Taylor says the bronze is the part of the planned beginnings of an art walk proposal where future statues of native public figures will be displayed around the community.

In other business, Commissioners approved outsourcing mowing and nuisance abatement services three to two with Commissioners Purcell and Hartman voting nay.

This was a tabled item after Purcell asked city staff to compare the cost of outsourcing versus keeping services in-house.

The report cited that while in-house work was a few thousand dollars cheaper, outsourcing the project would keep orders occurring in a timely manner and isn’t as hard on city equipment.

Commissioners also learned about the recent approval of a KDOT pedestrian study on the 5th and 6th Street crosswalks.

City Manager Trey Cocking said the study would occur sometime during the month of April.

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