The E. M. Viquesney "Spirit of the American Doughboy" Database
Photo provided by Linda Wilson, Rowan County Public Library.
MOREHEAD, KENTUCKY
N 38° 11.050 / W 083° 26.014
Copyright version 1920, pressed copper.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: 47260047.
Copyright version 1920, pressed copper.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: 47260047.
At old Rowan County Courthouse, at corner of Court Street and East Main Street.
The plaque inscription on the front reads:
TO THE BOYS OF ROWAN COUNTY WHO GAVE
THEIR LIVES IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR
COUNTRY DURING THE WORLD WAR, THIS
MONUMENT IS HONORABLY DEDICATED.
SPONSORED BY THE
ROWAN COUNTY WOMANS CLUB
(followed by list of 15 names)
THE RIGHT IS MORE PRECIOUS THAN PEACE.
WE SHALL FIGHT FOR THE THINGS WHICH WE HAVE ALWAYS
CARRIED NEAREST TO OUR HEARTS.
TO SUCH A TASK WE DEDICATE OUR LIVES. Woodrow Wilson
TO THE BOYS OF ROWAN COUNTY WHO GAVE
THEIR LIVES IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR
COUNTRY DURING THE WORLD WAR, THIS
MONUMENT IS HONORABLY DEDICATED.
SPONSORED BY THE
ROWAN COUNTY WOMANS CLUB
(followed by list of 15 names)
THE RIGHT IS MORE PRECIOUS THAN PEACE.
WE SHALL FIGHT FOR THE THINGS WHICH WE HAVE ALWAYS
CARRIED NEAREST TO OUR HEARTS.
TO SUCH A TASK WE DEDICATE OUR LIVES. Woodrow Wilson
A plaque on the base below the Doughboy’s right honors those gave their lives in World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
The Rowan County Women’s club sponsored the construction of the monument (the base, exclusive of the Doughboy) and it was dedicated November 11, 1919. The Doughboy was added under the direction and sponsorship of the local American Legion Post No. 126 and was dedicated November 11, 1929, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of the eleventh year following the Armistice that ended the World War. The bayonet has been replaced more than once, including by Steve Tirone and John Stephens of Morehead State University, who replaced it using the “lost wax” process in 1993.
* * *
Photo: Kentucky Stewarts website.
It isn't generally known that the Morehead Doughboy was added to the monument ten years after the original base was constructed, so there's a local belief that the Doughboy was placed there in 1919, which isn't possible, since the the first Viquesney Doughboy wasn't produced until 1921.
It was also once believed that the upper part of the monument was removed before the Doughboy was placed on it in 1929. There are even items on file in the Rowan County Public Library "documenting" this. However more recently, Webmaster Les Kopel discovered three old photos on the huge Kentucky Stewarts website, including the old postcard view shown here. It clearly shows the tall base was still intact before the Doughboy was placed on it. One of the photos, dated 1932, confirms the Doughboy was atop the tall base as late as then.
It was also once believed that the upper part of the monument was removed before the Doughboy was placed on it in 1929. There are even items on file in the Rowan County Public Library "documenting" this. However more recently, Webmaster Les Kopel discovered three old photos on the huge Kentucky Stewarts website, including the old postcard view shown here. It clearly shows the tall base was still intact before the Doughboy was placed on it. One of the photos, dated 1932, confirms the Doughboy was atop the tall base as late as then.
Photo provided by Linda Wilson, Rowan County Public Library.
Above: Members of the Rowan County Women's Club standing in front of the original tall base. The ladies are, from left to right: Rena Wells, Arye Lewis, Maribelle Cassity, Leora Hurt, Jimmie Bishop, Maggie Hogge and Lucy Evans.
Links:
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM5W23
http://www.kentuckystewarts.com/PhotoPages/RowanCounty1.htm
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM5W23
http://www.kentuckystewarts.com/PhotoPages/RowanCounty1.htm
