Samuel Ochanda was crafting the cows long before the year dawned for Baker City’s 150th birthday.

“Samuel started making these a year ago,” Jeff Jentzsch said.

Jentzsch and his wife, Susan, own Art Roamers, the organization that works with artists in Africa to bring their art to a wider audience in the United States.

The first African animal sculptures created by Ochanda arrived on Baker City’s Main Street five years ago, and since then visitors have posed with elephants, giraffes, a gorilla, crocodiles, a spider and even a scorpion.

“We get people coming here all the time just to see the animals,” Jeff said.

In 2023, a local group of citizens began talking about how to commemorate 2024 as the 150th anniversary of Baker City’s incorporation.

One idea was to commission Ochanda to create animals that represent Baker City’s agriculture heritage.

“He likes having work. And he’s good,” Jeff said.

But North American cattle aren’t a common sight in Kenya, so Jeff sent photographs to Ochanda.

Lots of photos.

“I sent screenshot after screenshot,” he said.

“I think that’s why they turned out so well — Jeff sent him gobs of photos,” Susan said.

In Africa, Ochanda used the photos as a reference to create the sculptures, which are made from 55-gallon metal drums that he cuts apart and then welds together in the shape of an animal.

“He has to convert reality into a sculpture,” Jeff said.

Now Baker City has a sort of bovine invasion — a shaggy Scottish Highland cow stands outside the Baker County Chamber of Commerce, and a longhorn greets customers at Compass Real Estate. A bucking bronc is displayed inside the front window at Glacier 45, and a bison stands guard in front of Ryder Bros. Other specimens are a yak, which inspired a special beer at North 7 Brewing, a cape buffalo peeking around the corner at Kicks Sportswear and an ankole-watusi standing near Crossroads Carnegie Art Center.

The stampede is completed by two goats — one at The Cheese Fairy and one at D&J Taco Shop — and two oxen pulling an authentic mining wagon and leading an Angus cow and calf on Court Plaza near Art Roamers.

A bonus animal is an “ox-strich” outside Baker Floral and Botanicals — be sure to read the accompanying description to learn more about this animal.

Each sculpture has one of those descriptions, plus a QR code that opens the Art Roamers website for more information.

Also, six sculptures have a cow bell with a special symbol — children are encouraged to pick up a brochure at Art Roamers, then visit each animal and note the symbol, then return the brochure for a pencil drum prize.

Art Roamers is located at 1902 Main St., and the entrance is on the south side of the building, facing Court Plaza.

The oxen scene was funded by a grant from the Public Arts Commission. The sculptures are for sale, Jeff said, but buyers can’t pick up the animals until the end of summer.

Each year, businesses can rent an animal for the summer season. Some have purchased sculptures, which decorate downtown all year long.

The rental program has expanded to Ontario, Jeff said, where the downtown there features a rhino, hyena, hippo, giraffe, zebra and cranes.

Other sculptures can be found in Portland, Bend and Halfway.

He’s not sure what animals will appear in Baker City for the summer of 2025.

“We’ll probably stay with the agricultural theme for a few years,” he said.

In addition to the metal sculptures, Art Roamers represents about seven other African artists and co-ops in their shop. Items include soapstone carvings, paintings, baskets and more. 

The shop is open Thursday through Monday. For information, visit artroamers.com.

Baker City’s 150th

Baker City was incorporated in 1874, and plans are in the works for a 150th birthday celebration on Aug. 9-10. The theme is “Celebrating Baker City 150: Gold, Cattle, Lumber and Legacy.”

The celebration kicks off Friday, Aug. 9, with music by Frank Carlson in Geiser-Pollman Park from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Events continue on Saturday, Aug. 10, with breakfast at Geiser-Pollman Park at 8:30 a.m., and a drum circle at 10 a.m. to kick off Art in Central Park that runs until 4 p.m. with booths, performances, competitions and art.

Main Street will be closed from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday to accommodate numerous activities, including a street dance with Bag of Hammers starting at 7 p.m.

Updates to the weekend’s schedule will be posted on the event’s social media pages — search for Baker City 150 on Facebook, and #BakerCity150 on Instagram or check Travel Baker County posts.