King Gambrinus is now twins: identical statues of the King of Beers can be seen in La Crosse, with unveiling of new one at festgrounds

One of the first things you might see now when you enter La Crosse’s festgrounds is a large statue of King Gambrinus.

The new statue, a duplicate of an Elmer Petersen work already seen in La Crosse, was unveiled Thursday morning, shortly before the official start of this year’s Oktoberfest. Gambrinus is a gift from Kristine and Sandra Cleary, in honor of their father Russ Cleary and grandfather Roy Kumm, who both were presidents of the Heileman brewery.
“It was done in about the 70’s,” Sandra says about the Gambrinus figure, “but it’s a beautiful bronze.”

“We were just thrilled how well Oktoberfest has presented it here,” she told reporters. When asked about the cost of the statue, the Clearys said “priceless.”

The original Petersen statue stands outside Harborview Plaza, the former Heileman corporate building, along State Street. The Clearys say the process of duplicating Gambrinus was not easy, with a wax mold taken of the statue, and sent to the Dakotas to reproduce the original bronze.

Thursday was the first day of the 2024 Oktoberfest, which continues through Sunday. The Torchlight Parade took place Thursday night, and the Maple Leaf parade will be on Saturday morning.