Pioneer Courage Park

This is a small but neat little park that features a bunch of life sized sculptures of early settlers and pioneers. There is metered street parking within a reasonable walking distance, but this is not a destination park and most people won't be traveling here just for the park. It is touted as one of the largest sculpture parks of its kind in the US. The bronze and stainless steel sculptures are the work of Blair Buswell and Edward Fraughton. They give a very life-like and accurate depiction of westward expansion with statues families and animals, with wagons, venturing into unfamiliar territory. First National Bank commissioned the large project, which was headed by landscape architect Jim Reeves. This was one of two parks that were commissioned by the Bank.The sculptures are divided into sub sections including one titled Wagon Master, which represents the wagon that guided the rest of the pioneers and was responsible for supplies and management of the group. There is also the Hunter Group, which represents the wagon trains that were responsible for hunting and providing food provisions. You will also see the Trail Boss, waving his hat in the air and a Native American sentinel . The sculptures are very detailed. You can really feel their struggle. Viewers are able to mingle about and in between the sculptures. On the back side of the sculptures is an overlook area with some cement benches and some information placards along the wall. There is also a paved walkway and a decent patch of green space that I saw some people with their dogs.This is a nice park and definitely catches your eyes, but I do not see people making this their primary destination. Most visitors, such as myself, will be passing by or on their way to another destination and then are drawn in by the magnificent sculptures. Still, it is something that you must see while in Omaha. I highly recommend checking it out.