Some new additions were officially welcomed to Canton's downtown district Thursday morning.

About 20 people were on hand for the dedication ceremony for the four statues. Statues depicting a Cherokee Native American and a Canton Mill Worker are placed in Cannon Park. Statues of a butterfly girl and a boy with a fish have been placed in Brown Park in front of City Hall.

"These two guys point to the past," Gregory Johnson, the artist who created the pieces, said about the statues in Cannon Park. "The other two point to the future."

The artwork was made possible by The Sembler Company, the developer of the Canton Marketplace development on Highway 20 near Interstate 575 exit 19. The development agreement required for some artwork be placed on the site. Mayor Gene Hobgood suggested the sculptures be placed in the parks instead.

"People who go to shopping centers are in a hurry," Hobgood said. "They are not in the frame of mind to enjoy (the statues)."

Hobgood said the mill worker and Cherokee Indian statues represent two parts of Canton's history.

"They represent our history really well," he said. "They play a very, very important role in our history."

Johnson said the two statues in Brown Park are designed to get people to think about getting outdoors more.

"I like to think of going green," Johnson said. "Hopefully, kids will find that inspirational."

Hobgood said the statue in Brown Park of a boy with a fish made him think about the Etowah River. He said there are plans to place a plaque on each statue that gives a short description about each one of the pieces.

Wanda Roach of the Canton Downtown Development Authority said she thought the sculptures were a great addition for the downtown district.

"They present another aspect of our culture," she said, adding that a lot of people walk through downtown Canton every day and the sculptures are another item to draw people in. "It is vitally important to get people into downtown."