Soldier and Sailor on the Clearwater Memorial Causeway, Clearwater, Florida. (original) (raw)
Memorial Day 2012
Clearwater and Dunedin, Florida War Memorials
Rediscovered, Restored (Clearwater) and Relocated (Dunedin)
These matching Army and Navy statues occupy a postage stamp-sized park at the east end of the Clearwater Memorial Causeway (started 1924, completed 1927). In fact, if it wasn't for the statues' presence, it would just be another bridge. They are most certainly overlooked by motorists but the occupants of surrounding buildings can�t help but notice them.
Clearwater Memorial Causeway Doughboy Statue
Photo by John Troesser, May 2012
Clearwater Memorial Causeway Sailor Statue
Photo by John Troesser, May 2012
The sailor looks seaward, while the soldier faces the mainland.
The bronze plaques are hard to read from eight or nine story windows (or from moving cars), so we have decided to include photosof them here.
These two statues are one set of nine that are displayed together as a pair.
There were only a total of nine sailors made (the plaqueis in error) while there were well over 125 �doughboy� statues manufactured. (See Texas Monuments & Statues)
There were four slightly different designs made of the soldier. Most include the tilted stumps / posts of the battlefield at the base. Some even include barbed wire which may have been added for a touch of �reality� by the sponsoring committee. It has been estimated that one out of ten WWImemorials is, in fact, a �doughboy.�
E. M. Viquesney was the sculptor who met the sudden demand for statuary following Armistice Day (Novemebr 11, 1918). Viquesney (pronounced Vick-Kay-Knee) was a third generation stonecutter of French extraction who settled in Indiana and Georgia (two states known for their quarries).
You can find out all that is known about the statues and their creator (including myths, locations, and even how to get repairs made) from http://doughboysearcher.weebly.com/index.html
The site is an entertaining and informative journey through the artist�s life as well as the lives of those hammered copper battalions (including a few rare stone statues). The correction of the number of sailor statues made is based on the content of this amazing site.
According to the plaque attached to each of these statues at the 2010 rededication, there are 137 doughboys adorning courthouse lawns, memorial parks and small town armories throughout the United States.
Spirit of the American Doughboy Plaque
Photo by John Troesser, May 2012
Spirit of the American Navy Plaque
Photo by John Troesser, May 2012
Clearwater Florida Memorial Causeway Bridge
Photo by John Troesser, May 2012
See State Stones form a Modest Monument - Dunedin, Florida War Memorial
Memorial Day, 2012
� John Troesser
Forum:
Article states there are nine pairs of Viquesney Doughboy/Sailor sites around the country, and that the plaque mentioning only 7 is in error. The plaque is correct (for now; I will explain later). There are nine signed Viquesney Doughboy statues in the state of Texas, but there are currently only seven locations throughout the country that have the Viquesney Doughboy/Sailor pairings. They are located at Kingman, AZ; Clearwater, FL; Palatka, FL; Fort Wayne, IN; Granite, OK; Hobart, OK; and Crowell, TX. Recently an eighth copy of the Sailor was found "hiding in plain sight" inside the Brass Anchor Ships Store in Pentwater, MI, where it had stood for something like 35 years before someone spotted it and reported its existence online. The statue was bought by the city of Naperville, IL, this June 1 and will be installed this October 13 (the birthday of the U.S. Navy) near its copy of the Doughboy, making the eighth pair in the country. If you know of two other locations (before the Pentwater discovery), I would certainly like to know where they are, so I can add them to my website. - Les Kopel, Webmaster, http://doughboysearcher.weebly.com/, June 29, 2013 Related Topics: WWI Chronicles | Texas Statues & Monuments |
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