Repair efforts putting Clayton eagle back in fine feather

The Clayton eagle is getting a facelift.

More than a facelift, actually: It is being saved from destruction thanks to the efforts of the Clayton-Deer Park Historical Society.

The eagle is visible to travelers along Highway 395 at the Clayton Drive-In Restaurant a few miles north of Deer Park. Its permanent home is an 8-foot-tall stand in the restaurant’s parking lot.

The eagle is the largest known artifact from the Washington Brick and Lime Co.’s terra cotta plant in Clayton, Washington, which produced terra cotta works until its closure in 1947.

The eagle stood atop the National Guard Armory in Spokane from 1922 to 1976, when it was moved to accompany the Guard’s new location at Geiger Field. And in 2009 when renovations at the airfield necessitated removal of the eagle, the historical society volunteered to bring it home to Clayton, according to Bill Sebright, president of the society.

The group repaired the eagle and rededicated it in 2010 for the men and women of the 1st Battalion Infantry of the Washington National Guard. But since then, Sebright said, about 20 pieces have sloughed off.

“We thought they were from the areas we repaired, but we’ve discovered it’s from new areas,” he said.

Concerned about further deterioration of the 9-foot-tall, 3  1/2-ton bird, the Clayton-Deer Park Historical Society set about researching how to save it.

Even though the cost would drain most of the society’s reserves if they have to pay for it out of pocket, Sebright said the group hired Pioneer Waterproofing to strip the paint, redo the old repairs, make new ones and apply a special paint that will allow moisture to get out but not get in.

Work began earlier this month and is expected to be finished this week.

The repairs will cost nearly $12,000, with $3,000 donated so far, including a grant from the Heritage Network and one member of the society making a $200 donation, which was matched by his employer, Avista.

“This eagle, which is such a perfect example of the terra cotta work done here in the 1920s, is something we feel so strongly about, especially as we have dedicated it to our veterans,” Sebright said. “It is our project, of course, but we certainly welcome any donations to help us save our eagle.”