HOUSE RESOLUTION No. 6024
A RESOLUTION honoring the legendary Kansas sculptor Pete Felten on his 90th birthday.
WHEREAS, The legendary sculptor, iconic artist and lifelong Kansan Pete Felten Jr., was born in April
1933 in Hays, Kansas; and
WHEREAS, While attending Hays High School, Felten was recognized as a track star and expert
swimmer; and
WHEREAS, After graduating high school, Felten enrolled in courses at Fort Hays State University and
served in the U.S. Navy from 1952 through 1956; and
WHEREAS, Shortly after serving his country, Felten started sculpting limestone in 1957 at the age of
24; and
WHEREAS, Felten is described as a gracious, sharing and contributing member of the Hays
community; and
WHEREAS, Felten's limestone works have made him a cultural, historic and renowned icon in Hays,
the State of Kansas and the United States of America; and
WHEREAS, With just a hammer and a chisel, Felten has crafted hundreds of limestone landmarks,
monuments and symbols throughout Kansas; and
WHEREAS, In 1961, Felten finished Buffalo Bill Cody, Felten's first large commissioned piece, located
in front of the Hays Public Library; and
WHEREAS, In 1967, Felten completed Monarch of the Plains, a monstrous 8-foot-high, 24-ton
sculpture at the historic Fort Hays, just off U.S. Highway 183, to commemorate the centennial of the City
of Hays; and
WHEREAS, In 1976, Felten created the Hereford Bull, located at the Kansas State University
Agricultural Research Center, to commemorate the center's 75th anniversary celebration in 1976; and
WHEREAS, In the early 1980s, Felten was commissioned to carve for the Kansas State Capitol the
likeness of four prominent Kansans, namely, former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, aviation pioneer
Amelia Earhart, Topeka journalist and former U.S. Senator Arthur Capper and Emporia journalist William
Allen White; and
WHEREAS, In Hays, Felten meticulously carved the sculptures of the same four famous Kansans out of
Silverdale limestone, which came from southeastern Kansas, during a three-year span; and
WHEREAS, Later, the sculptures of the four famous Kansans were moved east 200-some miles down
Interstate 70, to be displayed in the rotunda of the Kansas State Capitol; and
WHEREAS, Kansas State Capitol visitors will be able to enjoy, learn and appreciate Felten's four
famous Kansans sculptures for generations to come: Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of Kansas: That we honor the sculptor Pete
Felten on his 90th birthday; and
Be it further resolved: That we celebrate the hundreds of limestone creations sculpted by Felten,
including his four famous Kansans in the Kansas State Capitol.
House Resolution No. 6024 was sponsored by Representative Barbara Wasinger.
I hereby certify that the above RESOLUTION originated in the HOUSE, and was adopted by that body.


Speaker of the House.


Chief Clerk of the House.
HR 6024