Capital Cigar Store/Midwest Eye Clinic Indian

I don’t know how many of you are familiar with the gigantic cigar store Indian who stands atop a building on South Pulaski (it’s sometimes called “The Indian Building.”)

I am curious to know how tall the statue is? I tried to call Capital Cigar Store using a number I found online, but it has been disconnected. I may try to call the Midwest Eye Clinic (in the same building) tomorrow to see if anyone there has that information.

Meanwhile, does anybody here have any ideas about how I can find out how tall the statue is?

This is 63/Pulaski. GoogleMaps Streetview link: here

There’s a user photo on that map page that has an Olympic torch (I think) edited in.

No Charge Estimate: About 12-16 feet with extended arm, not including footings. Total height above street level looks like maybe 32-36 feet.

Thanks! I’ll make a note of that. I’m useless at estimating measurements, distances, etc.

I’m also wondering how long the statue has been on top of the building and/or how old it is.

There’s a fairly straight-on photo at this sight (click to enlarge it):

There is a door just below him, and he looks about 2.5 times as tall as the door (head to toe). If we assume the door is about seven feet high, that makes the Injun about 17-18 feet tall.

Good eye, Tim! (I guess you won’t need to go to the eye clinic and get glasses like the Indian did…)

Thanks!

Dunno if anyone’s still interested, but Geoffrey Baer will be answering this question on Chicago Tonight this evening. Channel 11, 7 pm.

I concur with jnglmassiv. The base is about the height of the women in the photo below the statue, and the statue, with arm raise, is about three times her height. Say the women is 5 feet tall, that places the statue itself in the 15 feet range +/- a foot or so.

(As an engineer, I feel compelled to point out that the distance from the statue allows us to mostly neglect perspective).

What was his answer?

As another engineer, we could always use the old “similar triangles” trick. Go down there on a sunny day, and measure the length of Tonto’s shadow. Then hold up a stick of known length and measure *its *shadow. The ratio of the stick to its shadow will be the same as the ratio of the injun to his shadow.

This page might be of interest;
Chicago, Illinois: Eye Care Muffler Man Indian

A truly pathetic attempt to hide the spam links.
Reported. (clubpenza)