Statue removed from Dallas Love Field installed at Texas Rangers’ ballpark

The Rangers, who love reunions more than most organizations, are bringing back another figure from the past, one who disappeared under a shroud of controversy nearly six years ago.

On Monday morning, the club accepted and installed the 12-foot bronze One Riot, One Ranger statue depicting a member of the Texas Rangers law enforcement agency that had previously stood at Dallas Love Field until it was removed during the racially-charged summer of 2020 after a book detailing incidents of police brutality and racism in the organization’s history was released.

The statue, which will stand on the left field concourse at Globe Life Field and greet fans who come through the north entrance, had been prominently featured at Love Field for most of 60 years before it was removed after the release of Cult of Glory: The Bold and Brutal History of the Texas Rangers, written by Doug J. Swanson. Multiple incidents of brutality and racism were cited in the book.

“We recognize that the history of the Texas Rangers, like that of our state and nation, includes moments that must be confronted honestly,” Russell Molina, board member of the Texas Ranger Association Foundation, said in a written statement. “While not everyone who has served across more than two centuries lived up to the ideal, most did — and they deserve to be remembered for their service, sacrifice, and commitment to the people of Texas.”

The statue — sculpted by Waldine Amanda Tauch and donated to the City of Dallas in 1961 by restaurateur Earle Wyatt and his wife, Mildred — and the legend have a convoluted history, at best.

According to an exhibit at the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum installed a year ago, the origin of the phrase stemmed from an incident in which Hall of Fame Rangers Capt. William “Bill” McDonald was sent to break up an illegally staged prize fight in 1896. According to the exhibit, when he showed up alone and was asked where the other Rangers were, McDonald replied, “Hell, I ain’t enough? There’s only one prize fight.” The legend grew over time. There is no citation of the specific “One riot, one Ranger” quote.

Swanson told The Dallas Morning News when the statue was removed that it depicts former Rangers Capt. E.J. “Jay” Banks, who was in charge when Gov. Allen Shivers sent the Rangers to block integration at a high school in Mansfield and a community college in Texarkana.

Molina, who referenced the McDonald story at the unveiling, disputes the notion that the statue is based on Banks. The base of the statue says “Texas Ranger of 1960” with the quote “One Riot, One Ranger.”

Swanson cited “Cast a Long Shadow: Biographical Sketch and Career Casebook of Legendary Ranger Captain E. J. (Jay) Banks,” by the lawman’s daughter, Linda Jay Puckett, as the reference for Banks being the inspiration for the statue. Another biography of Banks titled “Legend in Bronze,” was published in 1982.

“He was the model because he looked like a Ranger,” Swanson, who worked for The News for more than 30 years, said Monday from his home in Pittsburgh. “I have no knowledge that he was chosen for his involvement at Mansfield or Texarkana.”

Swanson said he “was surprised as anybody” when the statue was removed in 2020. His only opinion on the reinstallation of the statue is that he hoped some context would be added to the exhibit to explain the full history of the organization.

“It won’t take away from the great performances in the Rangers’ history,” he said. “Let’s just be able to see the real history, the whole history.”

According to Molina, the City of Dallas public art collection agreed to loan the statue to the Texas Ranger Association Foundation with the intent that it would be displayed at a new museum in Waco. That museum never came to fruition, and the statue had been in storage at Alliance Airport in Fort Worth. The foundation then initiated conversations with the Rangers baseball team to display the statue at the ballpark.

“Our charter as a baseball club and our foundation is we support the following segments of our society: First, it’s kids, and that’s where our focus is. Second is our first responders. And the last is our law enforcement,” Ray Davis, the majority owner of the Rangers baseball club, said Monday at the unveiling. “And in Texas, the point of the spear for our law enforcement are the Texas Rangers. We are very proud to be associated with them. And we hope that the over 6 million people who come through our stadium will view what you see here today.”

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