Two larger-than-life statues of princess Ulele stand on the grounds of Ulele restaurant near Water Works Park in Tampa Riverwalk, Florida.
Ulele was a Native American woman, the daughter of the chief of the Tocobaga tribe, who lived in the Tampa Bay area during the 1500s. The legend tells that her tribe captured soldiers of a Spanish expedition, and as revenge for the brutal act the Spanish soldiers did to their tribe, they intended to kill them. According to legend, when Juan Ortiz, the last and youngest soldier, was lying on the hot coals, about to get roasted to death, Ulele stepped forward asking to spare his life, and she saved him. Some say she felt sorry for him, others that she had feelings for him.
Even though the event happed years before Pocahontas met Jhon Smith, since the similarity to the story of Pocahontas, Ulele became known in recent years as Florida’s Pocahontas.
The Arizona artist Vala Ola created both statues. She featured Ulele as a strong woman, wearing traditional clothes, tattoos, and jewelry, made of shells and pearls.
The Ulele Monument is a 7-foot tall bronze standing statue unveiled on April 22nd, 2015. Ulele stands on hot coals with a pool of water below them. Her right hand is on her heart while her left hand is in the air, stopping her father from killing the soldier. It stands next to a restored spring that also bears her name.
On December 22nd, 2017, a second statue was installed. It is an 11-foot tall, 1,800-pound bronze bust titled “LOST TRIBES, Legend of Ulele,” representing the Native American tribes who were extinct. Vala Ola’s words about it – “Ulele is floating like an ethereal memory yet never to be forgotten.”
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