About the Artist
Coffeyville native, sports enthusiast, artist and historian, Don Sprague, literally has left his mark on Coffeyville. Don was born February 26, 1939, and passed away February 2, 1994, from cancer. He enjoyed playing fast-pitch softball, coaching youth and adult sports teams, including his own son, Tim, and attending local high school and junior college sporting events and Royals baseball games. However, he is most noted and well-known for his artistic contribution to Coffeyville, Kansas.
From 1961 to 1965, Don served in the U.S. Air Force. While stationed in Germany, he enrolled in and graduated from the Famous Artists Correspondence School in Westport, Connecticut. Upon returning to Coffeyville from the service, he started working for Bergman Sign Company. He continued working for Bergman Sign until the company was sold and renamed Ameri-Sign in the late 1970's. After Ameri-Sign closed in 1984, Don worked as a sign painter on his own before working for Dave Perkins at Advertising by Design. In 1988, Perkins sold his business to Don and his wife, Susie. The company became Sprague Signs in 1989, and was open until late 1993. During the more than 25 years in the sign business, Don designed and painted thousands of signs not only in Coffeyville and the area, but in various parts of the United States.
In 1969, he had the winning design in the Coffeyville Centennial Emblem Contest which had 250 entries. In 1973, his slogan, “A Great Past, A Greater Future”, was selected from 192 entries in the Coffeyville Chamber of Commerce Boost Coffeyville Slogan Contest.
In 1979, Don started drawing sports cartoons for The Coffeyville Journal and had more than 100 published. He also drew cartoons for The Good News.
In 1982, he was commissioned by P&M Antiques to do paintings of famous baseball players to be used for limited edition prints, which were sold nationwide. In 1985, his painting of baseball hall-of-famer Joe Sewell was accepted for display by the national Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.
In 1983, Don started designing Red Raven basketball and the Jayhawk Juco Bowl football program covers.
In 1984, he teamed with the Sertoma Club to offer prints of the Dalton Raid on Coffeyville to raise money to refurbish the Perkins Building (old Condon Bank). He was also commissioned by the Coffeyville Recreation Commission and Coffeyville Community College to do portraits of outstanding Coffeyville notables Jimmy LeClere and Dr. Russell Graham.
Don is probably most widely known for the 14 historical murals he painted all over Coffeyville from 1988 through 1992. Besides capturing historic events, people or things in Coffeyville's past, Don added some fun to viewing his murals by hiding his son's name (Tim) in each mural. The number of times “Tim” appears in each mural is noted by the number of dots behind Don's signature on the mural. He also used this same technique with most of his cartoons.
Facts About the Artist
- Don Sprague drew cartoons for The Coffeyville Journal from 1980-81 and more than 100 were published.
- He drew cartoons for The Good News.
- Don's painting of baseball hall-of-famer, Joe Sewell was accepted for display by the national Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown , New York.
- Don designed Red Raven basketball and the Jayhawk Juco Bowl football program covers.
- Being a self-described “hoarder of old things from Coffeyville ,” Sprague said he had an old original picture of the Daltons after they were shot. “I had traded for it when I was about 10 years old with a neighbor boy.” He used the photo and a projector to project the image on the wall, creating the Daltons “Laid Out” on Sidewalk.
- The Daltons “Laid Out” on Sidewalk took about 40 hours to complete.
- The Weinberg mural, Downtown Coffeyville in 1892, took 100 hours to complete, which he did in two weeks.
- The murals are designed to be viewed from across the street, or about 50 to 100 feet away, not as you are on the sidewalk 3 to 4 feet away.
- The Natatorium mural located at 9th and Elm was painted to show the huge bathhouse and fitness center built in 1906 by oil and gas baron W.P. Brown. While drilling for oil or gas, Brown struck fine spring water, and used it for indoor and outdoor swimming pools. The indoor gymnasium with the pool was for both men and women. The outdoor pool was bordered by a beach. Although most of the town's youngsters learned to swim there, the pool fell into disuse decades later because oil seeped into it.
A Tribute to His Son
Don Sprague and his wife Susie had one child named Tim. In many of the murals Don has hidden Tim's name somewhere in the painting. Admirer's can tell how many times Tim's name is hidden in a mural by the number of periods following Don Sprague's signature.
The Mural Gallery page on this Web site provides details about each mural. A picture of the mural is also provided. Moving the mouse over the image will display the hidden locations of Tim's name. Or....you can visit the murals in Coffeyville, Kansas yourself and try to find the hidden locations of Tim's name.
© 2007 Don Sprague Murals. All rights reserved.
Design by Robin Barone.
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