OOS Tour

The Spirit/ The Face of War

58 Locations / Curated by Madison Reep

War-related memorials have been a common phenomenon globally for centuries with some of the earliest forms celebrating the glory of war itself and the powerful participants. America’s modernization of war monuments can be dated to directly after the Civil War. The war created a civic need to mend the seams of a splitting nation, and the memorials functioned as a possible means to create an understanding between the two sides by emphasizing the importance of the citizen soldier, focusing on the individual who was affected in the gruesome conflict. Possibly the first example of a standardized Union citizen soldier sculpture is The Sentinel by Randolph Rogers, located in Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio. Two popular Civil War monument manufacturers featured near-exact replicas of this citizen soldier in catalogs and marketed them as ready-made designs. The question remains, Who is this man who has become a national symbol for Civil War memorials? In this instance, Rogers was depicting the man who had shot Stonewall Jackson, but later popular variants did not hold the same political sentiment that Rogers was trying to provoke and were focused towards a more generic understanding of the man’s identity.

At the end of World War I the government began to erect memorials to honor the fallen. This encouraged communities to follow suit, and a man named Ernest Moore Viquesney took notice as the national interest rose for these monuments. In 1920 he designed the most famous American World War I figurative memorial, titled The Spirit of the American Doughboy. Many replicas have been crafted, and they have been erected all over the U.S., with Ohio having the most Viquesney figures at fourteen sculptures total. Again we ask, Who was this man who fought for our country in the Great War? The sculpture’s face is a composite of faces of several veterans that Viquesney either met in person or had seen in photographs. Through this, Viquesney was capturing “the spirit” of the Doughboy, not a single exact likeness.

Because of these discoveries, I have titled my tour The Face/ The Spirit of War as an exploration of the unique lives of the participants individually portrayed in sculpture, an investigation of the sculptures that have defined a visual symbol or standard for the remembrance of many individuals in a war, and an observation of the sentiment of communal mourning. My tour intentionally spreads far across all of Ohio. This is not for someone to visit in any kind of order or in a single trip, but is done so that one may find the faces and the spirits of the veterans who fought for their home specifically, whether you’re in Trumbull County, Woodville, or even my hometown, Cleveland. You can gaze upon these sculptural phenomena and remember that SOMEONE, not just anyone, gave you the freedom to do so.

Read the full statement here: http://sculpturecenter.org/oos-doughboydrivingtour/

Locations for Tour

This World War I memorial features one of the famous E. M. Viquesney Doughboys, which were massed produced during the 1920s and 1930s to honor the fallen and injured of the Great War. The pressed copper statue is of an American…

A Union Army Sentinel stands in uniform holding a rifle with the bayonet in the air. His head is turned to the proper left. An article in "Harper’s New Monthly" magazine from June of 1866 includes a detail on the…

A bronze sculpture of General "Mad Anthony" Wayne flanked by a Native American and a frontiersman. This sculpture is a monument to the Battle of Fallen Timbers which took place on August 20th, 1794. Four bronze reliefs…

In the middle of Fort Huntington park, on the West end of downtown Cleveland, stands a monument to the great American naval commander Oliver Hazard Perry. The base of the monument steps up to a wide base level where two midshipmen…

Full figure portrait of John Hampden wearing long robes; his right arm is bent with hand resting on his chest; his left arm extends down towards the viewer. His head is craned down, looking towards the viewer, ready to call the…

A statue of a Hungarian Freedom Fighter. His rumpled coat and tousled hair show that he is in the heart of the Revolution. His rising, genuflecting posture was inspired by the Hungarian National Song "Talpra Magyar" or…

A lifesize statue of 4-time Olympic gold medalist track athlete Harrison Dillard. Dillard is a Cleveland native and Baldwin Wallace University alumnus. Dillard is represented at the peak of his jump over a hurdle. His trailing leg…

On the fifth of May 1888, the Cuyahoga County Soldier's and Sailor's Union unanimously approved a proposal to erect a massive monument, meant to commemorate the men and boys from Cuyahoga County who contributed to the…

Tadeusz Andrezej Bonawentura Kosciuszko was a Polish army officer and statesman and a Revolutionary War hero. His proper right arm is raised, brandishing a sword while his proper left arm is by his side clasping the handle of the…

This is a portrait sculpture of a World War Two Serbian Freedom Fighter named Draza Mihalouic. He was a Yugoslavian Army General who organized and lead resistance forces against Nazi Germany, which occupied Yugoslavia from…

A Memorial statue to 35 year Cuyahoga County Prosecutor John T. Corrigan. Corrigan spent over 50 years of his 91 year life devoted to service of the American people and the people of Cleveland as a soldier, senator, and…

Human figure dressed in Army overcoat, head covered with winter hat with ear flaps. Right leg and left arm missing (war wounds). Figure is leaning on a crutch and against a pole bearing sign ""Bus Stop"".

Man dressed in World War I uniform stands leaning to the proper right with his proper right knee bent slightly. His proper right arm is bent at the elbow while his hand rests on his thigh. His proper left arm is also bent and…

Civil War veterans and Clyde citizens had struggled unsuccessfully for more than a decade to raise funds for a memorial worthy of General McPherson, the highest-ranking Union officer killed in the Civil War. The catalyst for…

Two soldiers in World War II uniforms carry guns. One is wounded and supported by the other.

A strong example of late 19th Century bronze castinf that commemorates Toledo' Civil War hero. Shown in battle regalia with saber at his side and binoculars at the ready. This stately sculpture is installed on a 20ft granite…

French World War II soldier stands holding a rifle behind his back in his proper left hand. Proper right hand is raised above his head holding a wreath of olive branches. He looks up at the wreath, and appears to be in…

Heavily ornate pedestal of a basic, rectangular shape, upon which stands an infantryman. His rifle stands in front of him, the end of which is held in both hands. His arms are bent and held close and he looks straight ahead.

Standing figure of a World War I soldier returning home from victory. His proper left leg is forward and he looks to the proper right. He holds a rifle in his proper right hand and it rests on his shoulder. His proper left hand…

Life size sculpture of a male dressed as a doughboy during World War I. He is holding binoculars in his proper left hand. He has a holstered military hand gun strapped on his hip over his belted trench coat. He has a…

The Blue Ash Bicentennial Veterans Memorial Park, formally dedicated on May 25, 1991, and financed by the City of Blue Ash, is located in downtown Blue Ash adjacent to Towne Square at the southwest corner of Hunt and Cooper Roads.…

Civil War soldier with hands on rifle, the end of which rests on the ground. This figure surmounts a four-sided shaft which in turn rests on a stepped base.

A Union soldier stands at rest with his musket barrel resting on the ground. He stands atop a square column with reliefs of a cannon, a seal, anchors, and swords.

Male Civil War soldier with sword hanging from his belt on proper left side, proper right hand extended, pointing.

This massive monument stands erect in Trumbull county's Veteran Park. The sculpture memorializes the fallen Union men of the Civil War and depicts three military men: one at the top and two on either side. The soldier atop…

Soldier dressed in an U.S. Spanish-American War uniform stands with his proper left leg forward, bent and resting on a pile of rocks. With his proper right hand on the trigger, his proper left arm rests on his leg holding the…

Female figure, with wings representing victory, in striding position with proper right arm raised, originally holding a sword. Refurbished in 2013.

Male figure wearing a World War I Doughboy uniform stands holding a rifle with bayonet at his proper left side. His proper right arm is raised, his hand clenching a grenade. The statue is flanked by four additional short…

Life-sized statue of American WWI soldier in full-field uniform with grenade in proper right hand and rifle in proper left hand; statue is mounted on pedestal of vermiculated ashlar sandstone.

American Indian with bow and arrow stands with one foot up on a rock. It was after a design by Samuel Anderson Robb.

This Civil War monument is located in the Union Cemetery in Steubenville, Ohio. It is situated on a hill and surrounded by several graves in a radial pattern. The tall column of the monument is flanked by a Union soldier…

Male figure in a Civil War Union Calvary Uniform, head bowed in "an attitude of meditation." Coat hangs loosely from the shoulders; left hand holds gloves and a sheathed sword whose tip rests on the ground. It was…

Civil war soldier in uniform, hands on the muzzle of a rifle and standing in "parade rest." The figure stands on top of a stepped base that is carried on Gothic arches and supported by Corinthian-styled columns. The…

A Union army infantry soldier stands atop a 56 foot high granite shaft with four other figures around the base. The soldier holds a musket which rests on the ground in front of him. Other figures are an officer with sabre, flag…

Half-sized version of WWI infantryman in uniform standing at parade rest with helmet pushed back, rifle in proper left hand and knapsack and uniform coat held over proper right arm. This statue is considered unique of its kind as…

Statue of a Union soldier with rifle in hand seated on a stack of logs and looking off into the distance. It is mounted on a high stone base on a hillside beside the courthouse. Around the base of the statue are eight bronze…

This E. M. Viquesney Doughboy depicts a WWI soldier gallantly striding forward with a rifle held low in his proper left hand and a grenade raised high above his head in his proper right hand. This monument is the only WWI…

In 1915, the central figures of two Civil War soliders were dedicated in the town square, with a globe with an eagle on top. In 1924, Cleveland sculptor Steven A. Rebeck's Abraham Lincoln replaced the globe and eagle along…

A 2nd U.S Cavalryman stands proud atop a tall square obelisk-like column holding a rifle upright with the stock resting on the ground and the barrel pointed towards the sky. His proper left hand holds the barrel right above his…

This E. M. Viquesney Doughboy was erected in Woodville in 1927 to commemorate the fallen American servicemen of World War I. The pressed copper Doughboy looks to be in a forward stride motion with a rifle carried low in his proper…

Uniformed Civil War soldier with rifle. He stands at "parade rest" with his proper left foot slightly forward while both hands grasp his rifle which rests on the ground. In front of the sculpture is a torch with an…

Located in Trumbull County's Veteran Park, this sculpture was a new edition in 2008 to honor the American service members of World War II. It was built by volunteers from local building trade organizations with monetary…

This monument depicts a World War I soldier striding forward holding a rifle at waist-height in his proper left hand with a grenade help high above his head in his proper right hand. The statue once stood on the grounds of the…

This soldier in uniform from the Spanish American War stands holding a rifle to left of the stair leading up to the Dayton Memorial Hall. On the opposite sides of the stairs (to the right) is a uniformed World War I soldier.

Two Civil War soldiers stand dressed in Union uniform. One man stands atop a stone column while looking outwards and shielding his eyes with his proper left hand. The other man is dressed as a drummer boy and stands at the base…

Life-size soldier in World War I infantry uniform charges forward atop a granite pedestal while holding a rifle at waist-height in his proper left hand and a grenade above his head in his proper right hand. The style of this…

Portrait figure of George Rogers Clark standing at parade rest with his hands on his rifle. Three Native American Indians are carved in relief on the base along with a Kentucky rifleman.