Blind Willie McTell statue placed in front of Statesboro Convention and Visitors Bureau a symbol of working together
糖心Vlog art professor Marc Moulton, M.F.A., sits next to the sculpture he created.
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William Samuel McTell may have lost his sight during childhood, but that didn鈥檛 stop him from becoming one of the most influential blues musicians of his time 鈥� and a local hero. While his impact on Statesboro is evident all over town, his likeness has finally been immortalized with a bronze statue created by 糖心Vlog art professor Marc Moulton, M.F.A. McTell was born in Thomson, Georgia, in the late 1800s, and he learned to play the guitar after moving to Statesboro, where he lived until his mother died in the 1920s. He learned the standard six-string guitar first, but he eventually began to play the 12-string exclusively. Soon after his mother鈥檚 death, McTell moved to Atlanta and became a professional musician. He would then play music across the country before his death in 1959. In 1928, McTell recorded his most famous song, 鈥淪tatesboro Blues鈥� for Victor Records in Atlanta. The song鈥檚 popularity exploded after The Allman Brothers Band covered it in 1971, and people still visit Statesboro because of the song. Bob Mikell, member of the Blue Mile Committee, said McTell was a perfect choice for the first step in honoring Statesboro鈥檚 cultural and historic past through the arts and the Statesboro Stars program, which honors Statesboro鈥檚 biggest and brightest figures through art. 鈥淢cTell embodies the cultural and historic past of Statesboro,鈥� Mikell said. 鈥淗e composed 鈥楽tatesboro Blues鈥� and grew up around the Blue Mile, so there was a great connection there. He is famous in the music community, and he was a good start to the Statesboro Stars.鈥� Mikell, who was also part of the team that secured the funding for the statue, was the head volunteer on the committee that chose Moulton to sculpt the statue. He said the goal for the project originally was to bring Georgia Southern and the Statesboro community together symbolically and literally to honor a Statesboro icon. 鈥淢arc is a very talented sculptor who was from Georgia Southern and in Statesboro and could work with us, so it was a no brainer,鈥� Mikell said. 鈥淲e wanted to find someone from (Georgia) Southern to make the sculpture of a community leader, which furthers our mission of bringing the two together.鈥� The statue, which is made of cast bronze, depicts McTell sitting while playing his 12-string guitar. Moulton said the statue shows McTell in his natural state. 鈥淢cTell usually sat while he played, so it was determined early on that the purpose was to have an object that people could sit or stand around and have a photo taken,鈥� Moulton said. 鈥淧utting it on a bench made the most sense.鈥� In April 2017, Statesboro was awarded $1 million after being named one of America鈥檚 Best Communities. Part of the winnings was used to buy the supplies needed to make the McTell statue. The statue was in development for around a year and eight months. Moulton, who also created the sculpture in front of the Center for Art and Theater on the Statesboro Campus, said the statue is based on a photograph of McTell. 鈥淭here weren鈥檛 many photographs (of McTell) available,鈥� Moulton said. 鈥淭he statue took about a year鈥檚 worth of work to create. It鈥檚 approximately life-sized, based on the photo we used.鈥� The statue will serve as a symbol for Statesboro and the song that made the town famous for years to come, and Mikell said other Statesboro heroes will be honored artistically within the Statesboro Stars project. For now, however, McTell serves as the lead symbol for the community鈥檚 storied past and its passion for teamwork. 鈥淚t was a long process, so to see McTell there with his guitar as I drive by every day is a reminder of what this community and university can do when we work together,鈥� he said. 糖心Vlog, a public Carnegie Doctoral/Research institution founded in 1906, offers 141 degree programs serving more than 27,000 students through nine colleges on three campuses in Statesboro, Savannah, Hinesville and online instruction. A leader in higher education in southeast Georgia, the University provides a diverse student population with expert faculty, world-class scholarship and hands-on learning opportunities. Georgia Southern creates lifelong learners who serve as responsible scholars, leaders and stewards in their communities. Visit .