What significance does the statue of Tecumseh hold for midshipmen?
The original wooden figurehead was sent to the Naval Academy in 1866 after being salvaged from the wreck of the old ship of the line “Delaware,” which had been sunk at Norfolk during the Civil War to prevent her from falling into Confederate hands. The builders of the “Delaware” intended the figurehead to portray Tamanend, the great chief of the Delawares, a lover of peace and friend of William Penn. But to the midshipmen of the period, there was nothing in the name of Tamanend to strike the imagination. The effigy was also known by various other names — Powhatan, King Phillip, and finally Tecumseh — a great warrior and thus heroic and appropriate to the midshipmen. After 40 years of standing vigil in the Naval Academy’s Yard, the winds, sun and rain began to take their toll. This prompted the Class of 1891 to raise funds for a new figurehead of Tecumseh to be immortalized in bronze. The old wooden figurehead’s “brains” and “heart” were transferred to the new bronze statue for the sa
