The giant Indian that’s greeted fans entering Riverhead Raceway for the past three decades has been put back together after being broken in two by Superstorm Sandy Oct. 29.
Raceway owners Barbara and Jim Cromarty purchased the Indian after the Danbury State Fair closed in 1981. It was one of 12 giant Indians among the numerous larger-than-life plastic sculptures at the Danbury State Fair. When the fair shut down and the fairgrounds were sold — the site is home to a shopping mall today — the statues were auctioned off.
The Cromartys went to the auction and were determined to buy one of the Indians.
“It was pouring rain and I was drenched and we lost out on 11 of the 12 Indians. I told [Jim] ‘You better get this last one.’ And he did,” Mrs. Cromarty recalled in an interview with RiverheadLOCAL about a month before the storm came through and broke the statue in two.
The Indian has become a local landmark and even made an appearance in the hit HBO series, “The Sopranos.”
During a video chat at the Riverhead Chamber of Commerce awards dinner earlier this month — where Riverhead Raceway was honored as business of the year — the Cromartys vowed the familiar Indian chief would rise again.
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