Lady Rainier

Lady Rainier is a public sculpture in Seattle, Washington, United States. The work, consisting of a bronzed statue of a woman holding a glass, was commissioned by the Seattle Brewing & Malting Company (the producers of Rainier Beer) and created in Germany in 1903. It was designed as part of a fountain, with water overflowing from the cup, resembling beer foam. Upon completion, it was placed in a courtyard outside of their facilities in the city's Georgetown neighborhood. Over the next several years, it was relocated multiple times and is today located outside of a former Rainier brewery in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood. In 2005, activists in Georgetown proposed relocating the statue to Oxbow Park and restoring it as an active fountain. As of 2019^[update], the relocation had not occurred.

Lady Rainier

The statue in 2009
Location	3100 Airport Way, Seattle, Washington, United States
Coordinates	47°34′36.5″N 122°19′13.5″W
Type	Statue
Material	Bronzed
Height	10 feet (3.0 m)
Completion date	1903

Design

The bronzed statue stands 10 feet (3.0 m) tall and depicts a woman with an outstretched arm holding a glass.^[1][2] As a fountain, the water would have poured out from the cup, resembling beer foam spilling from a glass.^[1] The statue currently stands near the north entrance of the old Rainier brewery in SoDo, near Interstate 5 at 3100 Airport Way.^[3][4]

History

1904 Image of Lady Rainier by Asahel Curtis

The statue was crafted in Germany and purchased by the Seattle Brewing & Malting Company, the manufacturers of Rainier Beer, who installed it as a fountain in a courtyard in front of their brewery in Georgetown in 1903.^[1] In 1904, the statue was featured in an article on the brewery by The Seattle Times,^[2] with the newspaper saying that the art piece was "made especially for the Rainier Brewery and imported from Germany (and) is a work of art and would grace any of the city’s parks".^[5] In 1912, the brewery was expanded and a machine shop was built on the courtyard,^[2] with the company relocating the statue to the top of the building.^[1] Over the next several years, the statue was relocated several times,^[1][5] and in 1916, the fountain element was turned off as the company closed due to the enactment of Prohibition in Washington.^[5] In the 1930s, following the repeal of Prohibition, production of Rainier Beer resumed at a new location in SoDo.^[3] In 1954,^[6] the statue was also relocated to this new facility,^[1] located 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the old facility.^[6] In 1999, this facility was sold by the Stroh Brewery Company (which had acquired the Rainier brand), who donated the statue to the Museum of History & Industry.^[1] In the early 2000s, the facility ceased to be an active brewery and began to lease its space to other businesses,^[3] including Tully's Coffee, which uses the space as its headquarters.^[1][5] A similar situation occurred with the Georgetown facility, which is also no longer an active Rainier brewery.^[3][4]

In 2005, activists and members of the Georgetown Community Council announced plans to relocate the statue to Oxbow Park in Georgetown,^[1] near the Hat 'n' Boots,^[7] which was also relocated.^[1] The park had been dedicated earlier that year and was planned with the sculpture in mind, with a patch of land set aside to host the piece.^[1] Additionally, they planned to restore the piece as a working fountain, with the total cost estimated at $30,000.^[1] However the planned relocation has not come to fruition, with The Seattle Times reporting in 2019 that the sculpture was still standing near the old Rainier brewery.^[3]