Shemanski Fountain on the Park blocks between SW Salmon and Main of Portland, Oregon is also known as Rebecca At The Well. This fountain was a gift to the city from Joseph Shemanski in 1926 to thank the city for its kindness to him. This fountain has the Italianesque trefoil design which Carl L. Linde did. The cast stone structure that surrounds the bronze sculpture was designed by Oliver Laurence Barrett.
Shemanski came to Portland as a clock salesman and left as a successful businessman. The Shemanski fountain is also named as Rebecca at the Well. According to the stories, Rebecca offered to draw water for Abraham's servant and many camels -- possibly as much as a half ton of water.
By providence, Rebecca's act of kindness and service revealed her as the bride. The Water Bureau partnered the Regional Arts and Culture Council or the RCC in 2004 to restore this serene landmark. The Water Bureau was forced to repair the fountain again when vandals pushed the figure of Rebecca off her base in 2007. Rebecca suffered extensive damage and repair work cost the city thousands of dollars. The Rebecca came into contact with one of the drinking fountain bowls while falling breaking off some of the sandstone casting that encases the bronze bowls. It took several months in a shop to undergo and complete restoration. The recast base and statue were re-installed onto the fountain and Rebecca was turned back on for the public to enjoy on September 20th, 2007.
The Water Bureau has been forced to shut-down the entire fountain until replacement parts can be acquired when thieves stole the brass nozzles off of the fountain's bowls in early 2008. Unfortunately, due to the age of the nozzles, off-the-shelf replacement parts are unavailable. The bureau had to remove another nozzle and have a mold of it recast.
