Tecumseh-Brock statue unveiled in Sandwich Towne

After about seven years, Windsor's west-end finally has its historic tribute to ChiefTecumseh and General Isaac Brock sitting prominently atop the roundabout that serves as a gateway into Sandwich Towne.

The bronze statue was unveiled Friday to a large crowd of residents, politicians, dignitaries, andchildren fromGeneral Brock Public School.

Local sculptor Mark Williams spent two-and-a-half years on the piece, which depicts the leaders on the morning they went into battle.

"After seven years of waiting for it, it's great,"said Williams.

General Brock and Chief Tecumseh forged a special alliance inthe War of 1812, or more specifically the Battle of Fort Detroit, which started when British and Indigenous fighters crossedthe river from what is now Windsor's west-end neighbourhood of Sandwich Towne.

Williamssaid he paid special attention to the relationship the two men had.

"The night before the battle they met in Amherstburg at Fort Malden andGeneral Brock presented ChiefTecumseh with a holster of guns that's on the horse's neck you can see," he said. "Chef Tecumseh in return gave General Brock the sash that he is wearing."

That statue depicts Chief Tecumseh with hair covering half of his face, which also has significance for Williams.

"[Indigenous people]never wanted their souls taken, so you couldn't take a picture of course they didn't have cameras but you couldn't sketch or anything like that. I've hidden Tecumseh's face,protecting that inner soul," said Williams.

The lateJohn Muirspearheaded the project back in 2012 on the200thanniversary of the War of 1812, and his son attended the ceremony Friday to see his dad's dream finally come to be.

Muir was a former principal at General Brock Elementary and envisioned the statue and roundabout being in front of the school, however there wasn't enough space there for the project.

The monument was supposed to be completedlast September, but was delayed after Indigenous artifacts were found nearby, prompting archeologists to dig the area.

"Some of the artifacts they found recently go back 2,600years," saidRussell Nahdee, coordinator of the Aboriginal Education Centre at the University of Windsor and member of Walpole Island First Nation.

"I think what it means to me is our story now has a chance to get out there. It really is part of our found histories and the history of our community,"