Artist: Raymond I Jacobson
Year:1921
Dedicated to Ludie Porter
The first sundial was built in 1921 as a memorial for Anna T. Lincoln. During her time at Carleton, Lincoln often desired a beautiful dial on the “bare” campus. On May 22, 1921, the board of trustees voted for the creation of the memorial to Anna T and officially dedicated it to her on June 13, 1921. The nonfunctional sundial was built North of the Skinner Memorial Chapel. The sundial was designed by Charles Wells, a North Western sculptor. The pedestal on which the sundial was placed was made out of Bedford stone, the same stone used in the chapel. The position of the needle was calculated by H.C Wilson, the head of the mathematics and astronomy departments at Carleton. Dean Margaret J. Evans wrote the inscription. In 1962, a letter was sent to the President of the college discussing the details of removing the sculpture because of the disruption it caused. The sundial stood for 40 years before it was removed because of the inconvenience it caused students and faculty during commencement. During the early sixties, the sundial was moved back to a location behind Watson, and then towards 1990 it was “seen in rubble near Farm House.”
In 1989, a student saw the pedestal back on campus without the sundial sculpture. In 1991 the sundial was resurrected by another sculpture and dedicated to Laudie Porter, the wife of the former Carlton President, David Porter. The sundial was sculpted by Raymond I. Jacobson. The 200-pound sundial was placed in front of Laird Hall and was made out of bronze. This sundial is supposed to tell time by “casting a beam of light through a port at the top of the dial.” Many students were confused and unaware of the changes to the sundial until the original sundial was replaced. A student said the sundial dedicated to Laudie Porter was “silly looking” and “inappropriate aesthetically for the rather classical pedestal.” The same student expressed that the fact that the sundial was two-thirds of the height of the pedestal made it look silly sitting on top of it. Other students expressed that they didn’t even notice the sculpture.
