The Doughboy on its new, redesigned base. Photo: Tour of Honor rider Jim Clement.
MOREHEAD, KENTUCKY
N 38° 11.050 / W 083° 26.014
Copyright version 1920, sheet bronze.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: 47260047.
Copyright version 1920, sheet bronze.
Smithsonian Art Inventory Control Number: 47260047.
At Freedom Park on grounds of Rowan County Arts Center (formerly 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.
Photo supplied by Linda Wilson, Rowan County Public Library, Morehead, KY.
Above: Members of the Rowan County Women's Club standing in front of the original tall pedestal, ca. 1929. The ladies are, from left to right: Rena Wells, Arye Lewis, Mary Bell Cassity, Leora B. Hurt, Hattie Bradley, Jimmie Bishop, Maggie Hogge and Lucy J. Evans. The organization still exists, but is now called the Morehead Women's Club.
The Rowan County Women’s club sponsored the construction of the monument (the pedestal, exclusive of the Doughboy) and it was dedicated November 11, 1919. The Doughboy was added ten years later 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 Rowan County Women’s club sponsored the construction of the monument (the pedestal, exclusive of the Doughboy) and it was dedicated November 11, 1919. The Doughboy was added ten years later 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.
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At some unknown point after 1932, the pedestal was shortened, with the narrower part on top removed.
At right, the Doughboy on its shortened pedestal. The bayonet has been stolen more than once; it was replaced by sculptor Stephen Tirone around 1987, and again by John Stephens of Morehead State University in 1993. Update September 10, 2014: The statue was taken down for cleaning and repairs to the pedestal under the sponsorship of the Rowan County Veterans Foundation (RCVF), with fundraising done by the Women's Club. The restoration work was done by sculptor Sam McKinney. The rifle sling, missing for many years, was not replaced. Update November 6, 2014: The statue was returned to its new rebuilt pedestal in time for a rededication on the following Veterans Day. |
Photo supplied by Linda Wilson, Morehead, KY.
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Photo: Kentucky Stewarts website.
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It was once believed that the upper part of the old base 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 "fact". However, I discovered some old photos on the old Kentucky Stewarts website (now on Flickr.com), including the one shown at left. It clearly shows the old tall base was still intact as late as 1932 and had the Doughboy on top.
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