The E. M. Viquesney "Spirit of the American Doughboy" Database
Photo provided by Beth Rahn, Office Manager, Elmridge Cemetery.
MUNCIE, INDIANA
N 40° 10.917 / W 085° 26.442
Copyright version 1934, cast zinc.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: IN000082.
Copyright version 1934, cast zinc.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: IN000082.
In Elm Ridge Cemetery, 4600 Kilgore.
The plaque on the front reads:
THE
ELIZABETH SEARS
MEMORIAL
TO
DECEASED VETERANS
OF THE
WORLD WAR
1917 - 18
THE
ELIZABETH SEARS
MEMORIAL
TO
DECEASED VETERANS
OF THE
WORLD WAR
1917 - 18
While not easily determinable from the photograph, the monument is standing on top of a Viquesney designed mound that is encircled by rocks, as are several other Doughboys. It was dedicated in Elm Ridge Cemetery August 13, 1939 after having been briefly located in Old Muncie City Hall on Jackson Street.
Based on 1939 correspondence from Viquesney to a representative of Elm Ridge, it is believed that it was damaged during the brief period it was on display at the City Hall and it was necessary to do some restoration work on it before it was placed in the cemetery. In one of the letters, Viquesney included a strong suggestion that the mausoleum at the cemetery would be enhanced by the presence of his statue, "The Unveiling", if finished in a pearlescent plaster composition for the body and a dull white for its heavy drapes.
A picture of this Doughboy on its pedestal was included in a Viquesney promotional brochure.
Based on 1939 correspondence from Viquesney to a representative of Elm Ridge, it is believed that it was damaged during the brief period it was on display at the City Hall and it was necessary to do some restoration work on it before it was placed in the cemetery. In one of the letters, Viquesney included a strong suggestion that the mausoleum at the cemetery would be enhanced by the presence of his statue, "The Unveiling", if finished in a pearlescent plaster composition for the body and a dull white for its heavy drapes.
A picture of this Doughboy on its pedestal was included in a Viquesney promotional brochure.
Copy of plans provided by Beth Rahn, Office Manager, Elmridge Cemetery.
Above: Plans Viquesney drew and furnished for Elm Ridge Cemetery to build a mound for placement of their Doughboy. Several Doughboys in other locations were mounted on circular mounds like this that had boulders scattered around them. (Chicago’s Lincoln Park, and Evansville, Indiana's original location are examples.) In settings where this approach could be used, it was much less costly than a large stone pedestal.
Links:
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/log.aspx?LUID=f51568df-a333-4e9b-9522-af0638cc56ae
http://www.hmdb.org/Marker.asp?Marker=31347
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMC6EM_Spirit_of_the_American_Doughboy_Muncie_Indiana
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/log.aspx?LUID=f51568df-a333-4e9b-9522-af0638cc56ae
http://www.hmdb.org/Marker.asp?Marker=31347
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMC6EM_Spirit_of_the_American_Doughboy_Muncie_Indiana
