Constructed in 1930 by Giovacchino Mattei of Mattei Plaster Relief Ornamental Company, the four polar bears were paid for by T.B. Hughes for his newest shop, Polar Bear Frozen Custard. The bears were initially placed outside the store to encourage customers. When Polar Bear Frozen Custard closed in the early forties, Reverend Zema Hill (resident minister and funeral director) bought the statues and placed them in front of his funeral home. Around the time the funeral home closed in 1952, the bears were sold to nearby neighbors Michael Emrick and Phil Rush to display outside of their homes. In 2002, two bears were sold to the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency and placed permanently in Polar Bear Plaza. While a polar bear still stands outside the Emrick house, the location of the fourth polar bear is unknown.
Polar Bears
36.14265, -86.786973
Description
Constructed in 1930 by Giovacchino Mattei of Mattei Plaster Relief Ornamental Company, the four polar bears were paid for by T.B. Hughes for his newest shop, Polar Bear Frozen Custard. The bears were initially placed outside the store to encourage customers. When Polar Bear Frozen Custard closed in the early forties, Reverend Zema Hill (resident minister and funeral director) bought the statues and placed them in front of his funeral home. Around the time the funeral home closed in 1952, the bears were sold to nearby neighbors Michael Emrick and Phil Rush to display outside of their homes. In 2002, two bears were sold to the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency and placed permanently in Polar Bear Plaza. While a polar bear still stands outside the Emrick house, the location of the fourth polar bear is unknown.