Washington Avenue Soldier's Monument and Triangle

Last updated
Washington Avenue
Soldier's Monument and Triangle
Washington Avenue Soldiers' Monument.jpg
Memorial in 2008
Location Suffern, NY
Nearest city Hackensack, NJ
Coordinates 41°06′53″N74°08′58″W / 41.11472°N 74.14944°W / 41.11472; -74.14944
Built1908, 1921 [1]
ArchitectJ.W. Fiske Iron Works
NRHP reference No. 06000646
Added to NRHP2006

The Washington Avenue Soldier's Monument is located at the junction of that street and Lafayette Avenue (NY 59) in the village of Suffern, New York, United States. It sits on a small piece of land in the middle of the street known locally as the Triangle.

Contents

At different times during the Revolutionary War, George Washington and Rochambeau encamped the Continental Army near the memorial site for brief periods. A cannon from that war had been placed on the Triangle in 1908 with the intent of starting a memorial to the village's dead from the Civil War, but only after World War I was the monument finished and dedicated. Plaques have been added since then to honor those locally who served and sometimes gave their lives in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. [1]

Memorial

The two most prominent features of the memorial are a small cannon and a zinc statue of a doughboy. Both sit on a slightly elevated granite base.

Next to the stone bed of the cannon is a plaque stating that it was used in the Battle of Long Island in 1777. The doughboy is depicted in a heroic, defiant pose, with his shirt open and his helmet off, on the adjacent ground. Originally he was carrying a Springfield rifle with bayonet in his left hand; it has been replaced following the theft of the original. He stands atop a white pedestal, with plaques listing Suffern's dead from the different wars memorialized on each facet. [1]

History

The heirs of village founder John Suffern bought the cannon in 1851 and ritually fired it from the top of nearby Union Hill on Independence Day of every year, as well as for special events like the completion of the Erie Railroad across New York State in 1852. They donated the cannon to the village in 1908 to use as the latter saw fit, and the Village Board decided to place it on the Triangle. A local stonemason was paid $65 to build the granite platform, and the village granted a "perpetual privilege" to a local Union Army veterans' group to establish a memorial. [1]

At the time, however, the village's mayor was not popular, and one of the complaints against him was the establishment of the memorial, which his critics likened to a fort. Efforts to delay or outright cancel the memorial failed but delayed the completion and formal dedication of the project. Only after the United States had fought another war did interest in completing the memorial resurface, and in April 1921 the board authorized construction. The J.W. Fiske Iron Works of New York City cast a version of a statue it had erected elsewhere, in zinc (seen as a cheaper alternative to bronze). The focus on an ordinary soldier was part of a growing trend in war memorials of that era to shift emphasis from a commander or hero to the common man and woman on the line. [1]

It was dedicated on Memorial Day of that year. The village has held its ceremonies for that holiday at the monument ever since. The only change to the memorial besides the additional plaques for wars later in the 20th century was the theft of the original rifle in 1968, possibly as an act of protest against the war in Vietnam. [1] In 2006 the monument and Triangle were listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vietnam Veterans Memorial</span> War memorial in Washington, DC, United States

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, commonly called the Vietnam Memorial, is a U.S. national memorial in Washington, D.C., honoring service members of the U.S. armed forces who served in the Vietnam War. The two-acre (8,100 m2) site is dominated by two black granite walls engraved with the names of those service members who died or remain missing as a result of their service in Vietnam and South East Asia during the war. The Wall, completed in 1982, has since been supplemented with the statue Three Soldiers in 1984 and the Vietnam Women's Memorial in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iron Mike</span> Statues commemorating servicemen of the United States

Iron Mike is the de facto name of various monuments commemorating servicemen of the United States military. The term "Iron Mike" is uniquely American slang used to refer to men who are especially tough, brave, and inspiring; it was originally a nautical term for a gyrocompass, used to keep a ship on an unwavering course. Because the use of the slang term was popular in the first half of the 20th century, many statues from that period acquired the Iron Mike nickname, and over the generations the artists' titles were largely forgotten. Even official military publications and classroom texts tend to prefer the nickname to the original titles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allen George Newman</span> American sculptor

Allen George Newman III was an American sculptor, best known for his statue "The Hiker".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victory Monument (Chicago)</span> United States historic place

Erected in 1927, the Victory Monument, is a bronze and granite sculptural monument, based on a concept by John A. Nyden, and sculpted by Leonard Crunelle. It was built to honor the Eighth Regiment of the Illinois National Guard, an African-American unit that served with distinction in France during World War I. The memorial monument is located in the Black Metropolis-Bronzeville District in the Douglas community area on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois. The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 30, 1986. It was designated a Chicago Landmark on September 9, 1998. An annual Memorial Day ceremony is held at the monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. M. Viquesney</span> American sculptor (1876–1946)

Ernest Moore Viquesney was an American sculptor best known for his popular World War I monument Spirit of the American Doughboy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Division Monument</span> Military monument in Washington, D.C.

The First Division Monument is located in President's Park, south of State Place Northwest, between 17th Street Northwest and West Executive Avenue Northwest in Washington, DC, United States. The Monument commemorates those who died while serving in the 1st Infantry Division of the U.S. Army of World War I and subsequent wars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World War I Memorial (East Providence, Rhode Island)</span> United States historic place

The World War I Memorial is a bronze sculpture by Pietro Montana and is located at the intersection of Taunton Avenue, Whelden Avenue, and John Street in East Providence, Rhode Island, United States. The sculpture is modeled on Charles Atlas and depicts a dynamically posed soldier standing on a granite base. Montana's original design was modified by the East Providence Memorial Committee for being "too brutal". Dedicated on July 30, 1927, Major General Charles Pelot Summerall gave an address which highlighted the handicap placed upon the soldiers by a lack of preparedness and "invoked the fighting ideal embodied by Montana's doughboy." The World War I Memorial was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equestrian statue of James B. McPherson</span> Statue in Washington, D.C.

Major General James B. McPherson is a public artwork by American artist Louis Rebisso, located at McPherson Square in Washington, D.C., United States. Major General James B. McPherson was originally surveyed as part of the Smithsonian's Save Outdoor Sculpture! survey in 1993. The monument is a bronze equestrian statue of Civil War hero James B. McPherson. The statue is a contributing monument to the Civil War Monuments in Washington, DC, of the National Register of Historic Places.

<i>Oliver P. Morton</i> (monument)

Oliver P. Morton and Reliefs is a public artwork by Austrian artist Rudolph Schwarz, located on the east side of the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, at the intersection of North Capitol Avenue and West Market Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equestrian statue of George B. McClellan</span> Equestrian statue in Washington, D.C.

Major General George B. McClellan is an equestrian statue in Washington, D.C. that honors politician and Civil War general George B. McClellan. The monument is sited on a prominent location in the Kalorama Triangle neighborhood due to efforts made by area residents. The statue was sculpted by American artist Frederick William MacMonnies, a graduate of the École des Beaux-Arts whose best known work is a statue of Nathan Hale in New York City. MacMonnies was chosen to design the statue following a lengthy competition organized by a statue commission, led by then Secretary of War William Howard Taft. The monument was dedicated in 1907, with prominent attendees at the ceremony including President Theodore Roosevelt, New York City mayor George B. McClellan Jr., politicians, generals and thousands of military personnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of the Marquis de Lafayette (Washington, D.C.)</span> Statue by Alexandre Falguière in Washington, D.C., U.S.

Major General Marquis Gilbert de Lafayette is a statue in the southeast corner of Lafayette Square, in Washington, D.C., near the junction of Pennsylvania Avenue with Madison Place and close to the White House. The statue was erected in 1891 to honor Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette and his contribution in the American Revolutionary War. The square, originally part of the President's Park, was named in honor of the Marquis in 1824. The statuary was made by Alexandre Falguière and Antonin Mercié, and the architect who designed the marble pedestal was Paul Pujol..

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equestrian statue of George Henry Thomas</span> Sculpture in Washington, D.C.

Major General George Henry Thomas, also known as the Thomas Circle Monument, is an equestrian sculpture in Washington, D.C. that honors Civil War general George Henry Thomas. The monument is located in the center of Thomas Circle, on the border of the downtown and Logan Circle neighborhoods. It was sculpted by John Quincy Adams Ward, best known for his work on the statue of George Washington in Wall Street, Manhattan. Attendees at the dedication in 1879 included President Rutherford B. Hayes, Generals Irvin McDowell, Philip Sheridan, and William Tecumseh Sherman, senators and thousands of soldiers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equestrian statue of Winfield Scott</span> Equestrian statue by Henry Kirke Brown

Brevet Lt. General Winfield Scott is an equestrian statue in Washington, D.C., that honors career military officer Winfield Scott. The monument stands in the center of Scott Circle, a traffic circle and small park at the convergence of 16th Street, Massachusetts Avenue and Rhode Island Avenue NW. The statue was sculpted by Henry Kirke Brown, whose best-known works include statues of George Washington in New York and Nathanael Greene in Washington, D.C. It was the first of many sculptures honoring Civil War generals that were installed in Washington, D.C.'s traffic circles and squares and was the second statue in the city to honor Scott.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General William Tecumseh Sherman Monument</span>

The General William Tecumseh Sherman Monument is an equestrian statue of American Civil War Major General William Tecumseh Sherman located in Sherman Plaza, which is part of President's Park in Washington, D.C., in the United States. The selection of an artist in 1896 to design the monument was highly controversial. During the monument's design phase, artist Carl Rohl-Smith died, and his memorial was finished by a number of other sculptors. The Sherman statue was unveiled in 1903. It is a contributing property to the Civil War Monuments in Washington, D.C. and to the President's Park South, both of which are historic sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Protection of the Flag Monument</span> United States historic place

The Protection of the Flag Monument is a historic war memorial located in Academy Park at 715 South Main Street in Athens, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Designed in the Classical Revival style by the architectural firm McKim, Mead & White, with a sculpture by George Thomas Brewster, it was erected between 1900 and 1902, and has a granite pedestal topped by a bronze sculpture group. The sculpture depicts an adult soldier and a young drummer boy attired in Revolutionary War clothing and protecting their flag from falling into enemy hands. A commemorative plaque indicates it was dedicated in memory of the soldiers who fought in defense of the flag.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pietro Montana</span> Italian-American sculptor, painter and teacher

Pietro Montana was a 20th-century Italian-American sculptor, painter and teacher, noted for his war memorials and religious works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doughboy (Pittsburgh)</span> United States historic place

The Doughboy is a war memorial and neighborhood landmark in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Located at the Y-shaped intersection of Lawrenceville's two busiest commercial streets, Butler Street and Penn Avenue, the monument has become a symbol of the neighborhood and "probably the most well known veterans monument in Pittsburgh". In 2019, it was listed as a contributing property in the Lawrenceville Historic District.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Krattinger, William (June 2005). "National Register of Historic Places nomination, Washington Avenue Soldier's Monument and Triangle" . Retrieved 2008-05-29.