Right photo: Justin Chambers, volunteer, Mohave Museum of History and Art.
KINGMAN, ARIZONA
N 35° 11.5132 / W 114° 3.1575
Copyright version 1920, sheet bronze.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: 47260002.
Copyright version 1920, sheet bronze.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: 47260002.
In front of Mohave County Courthouse, 401 E. Spring Street.
The inscription on the plaque (below the eagle relief) reads:
IN MEMORY OF
THE MEN AND WOMEN
OF MOHAVE COUNTY
WHO SERVED IN THE
WORLD WAR
1917 – 1918
IN MEMORY OF
THE MEN AND WOMEN
OF MOHAVE COUNTY
WHO SERVED IN THE
WORLD WAR
1917 – 1918
A plaque dedicated November 11, 1997 at the foot of the base honors Korean-era Veterans.
The old machine gun.
Dedicated May 30, 1928 at the Mohave County Courthouse. A goldfish pond that was once at the base is now filled in and planted with flowers. A machine gun was originally mounted on the raised part of the base between the two figures. Its disappearance has been the subject of news articles containing speculations about when it vanished. While it was missing in a 1997 picture that appeared in the Daily Miner, it was reported as being present at the time of a 1993 survey of outdoor sculptures.
Kingman, Arizona is the only known location where two Viquesney statues occur on the same pedestal (Fort Worth, Texas has a Viquesney Doughboy and a WWII G.I. on the same base, but the latter is by a different sculptor, Giordano Grassi, and was placed in 1980).
Five other metal "Spirit of the American Navy" sculptures accompany Viquesney Doughboys at Clearwater, Florida; Naperville, Illinois; Fort Wayne, Indiana; Granite and Hobart, Oklahoma; and a stone version at Crowell, Texas. A similar tribute to the Navy, titled "Sailor", occurs at Palatka, Florida, but although placed by Viquesney, it was not sculpted by him.
[Portions below, describing the original 1928 dedication, are excerpted and edited from an online article by The Standard, and credited to the City of Kingman.]
The Memorial Day event started at 9:30 a.m. with a parade from the firehouse at Fifth and Beale Streets. The parade made its way to the Mohave County Courthouse by 9:45. The new memorial was erected to honor the men and women who served from Mohave County. The parade was led by Ed Wishon, the commander of the local American Legion No. 14, Swaskegame Post and Vice Commander of Arizona McFarland. At 10 a.m., Mr. Wishon performed as master of ceremonies for the dedication. Honorable Ross H. Blakely invoked the dedication of the monument.
The base for the WWI monument was started a few weeks earlier. Several local men volunteered to build the base. Ora Gruninger, who donated his time, supervised the work. Seven locals donated $5 each to the project and more donations came in. The base cost about $150, the monument cost about $2,650 ($1,000 apiece for the two statues, and the remainder for the machine gun, bronze plaque, and landscaping). The statues were shipped from Chicago on May 1, 1928.
Update March 3, 2019: The Doughboy and Sailor are planned for a much-needed restoration this year, including replacement of the stolen machine gun.
Kingman, Arizona is the only known location where two Viquesney statues occur on the same pedestal (Fort Worth, Texas has a Viquesney Doughboy and a WWII G.I. on the same base, but the latter is by a different sculptor, Giordano Grassi, and was placed in 1980).
Five other metal "Spirit of the American Navy" sculptures accompany Viquesney Doughboys at Clearwater, Florida; Naperville, Illinois; Fort Wayne, Indiana; Granite and Hobart, Oklahoma; and a stone version at Crowell, Texas. A similar tribute to the Navy, titled "Sailor", occurs at Palatka, Florida, but although placed by Viquesney, it was not sculpted by him.
[Portions below, describing the original 1928 dedication, are excerpted and edited from an online article by The Standard, and credited to the City of Kingman.]
The Memorial Day event started at 9:30 a.m. with a parade from the firehouse at Fifth and Beale Streets. The parade made its way to the Mohave County Courthouse by 9:45. The new memorial was erected to honor the men and women who served from Mohave County. The parade was led by Ed Wishon, the commander of the local American Legion No. 14, Swaskegame Post and Vice Commander of Arizona McFarland. At 10 a.m., Mr. Wishon performed as master of ceremonies for the dedication. Honorable Ross H. Blakely invoked the dedication of the monument.
The base for the WWI monument was started a few weeks earlier. Several local men volunteered to build the base. Ora Gruninger, who donated his time, supervised the work. Seven locals donated $5 each to the project and more donations came in. The base cost about $150, the monument cost about $2,650 ($1,000 apiece for the two statues, and the remainder for the machine gun, bronze plaque, and landscaping). The statues were shipped from Chicago on May 1, 1928.
Update March 3, 2019: The Doughboy and Sailor are planned for a much-needed restoration this year, including replacement of the stolen machine gun.
* * *
Les stands at the old fishpond.
Your Webmaster and Doughboy Searcher Les Kopel of Oxnard California at the Kingman, Arizona Doughboy. It was the first Doughboy I ever visited, and it took a sleepless night in a hotel listening to all the trains passing through to pull it off. But I got to see one of Viquesney’s rare "Spirit of The American Navy" statues for my trouble. I've been to quite a few other Doughboys since then.
