Montreal River bridge mural completed

By RICHARD JENKINS

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Hurley — Although bad weather delayed its completion, the mural decorating the base of one of the train trestles that connect Ironwood and Hurley over the Montreal River has been completed.

While organizers originally hoped that to complete the mural before school let out so the Hurley students who helped design the mural could finish the project, the plan shifted to have the organizers complete the mural, according to Amy Nosal, an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer with the University of Wisconsin's Iron County Extension Office, who helped organize the effort.

Featuring a variety of images that students felt represented Hurley in some way, according to Nosal.

"I think the community does a really good job of honoring our past and our history, but there is not really a lot about our future," Nosal told the Daily Globe when painting began in May, "so I started with the kids and I asked them, 'what would you like Hurley to be in the future? What are your hopes, your dreams, what do you love about your community now that goes forward?' They all picked a word and then drew an image of that word."

The images were then combined in a comprehensive design by local muralist Ann Marie Batiste.

The mural is painted on the concrete base of the former rail bridge that now allows all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles cross the river between Ironwood and Hurley.

Nosal also hopes that, in addition to looking toward the future, it helps students remember their roots.

"Growing up, you just want to get out and be somewhere else, and that's totally fantastic, but realize that you come from a good place and you can do good things," said Nosal, about what she wants students to realize.

Nosal also expressed hope that a second mural could be completed by Ironwood students on the other base of the bridge to further brighten the riverside and serve as a substitute for the current graffiti.

The project was funded by a grant obtained by the Iron County Health Department and was a collaboration between the Hurley K-12 School District, members of the community and the UW Extension Office.

The mural will later be blended into the larger construction project to create a trailhead between the two railroad trestles — one will be for the motorized trail and the other trestle will be the non-motorized trail — and U.S. 51. The trailhead will then be tied into a regional trail that local officials have been working on between Montreal Wis., and Sunday Lake in Wakefield.