Like numerous other cities big and small across the country, Milwaukee has its fair share of monuments to the servicemen of World War One. Some were constructed and installed in the years immediately following the war, while others were erected many years after the fact. Here is a list of several notable memorials I have recognized within the Cream City:
32nd Infantry Division Memorial at Red Arrow Park
The 32nd Infantry Division was one of the more notable Army units to gain fame during WWI. They were nicknamed "Les Terribles" by their French allies because of their strong fighting spirit, while back home they were popularly known as the "Red Arrow Division" due to their track record of piercing through the enemy lines like an arrow. The 32nd recruited men mostly from Wisconsin and Michigan, giving the unit a distinctly Midwestern spirit. The division saw combat during many of the American Expeditionary Force's major battles, notably in the Alsace Front, the Second Battle of the Marne, and the Battle of the Argonne Forest. Upon the division's return to Wisconsin after the war ended, numerous schools, sports teams, and parks were named after the 32nd Division. In particular, Milwaukee's own Red Arrow Park was originally located at the corner of 10th and Wisconsin Avenue. It contained a wading pool that was popular with children and was also a popular location for veterans and elderly people to meet. However, with the construction of the highway system running through the city, Red Arrow Park needed to be relocated. It reopened in its new location north of City Hall and across from the Performing Arts Center in October 1970. The distinctive red granite memorial to the "Red Arrow" Division was installed in 1984 and serves as a silent memorial to Wisconsin's fighting men of WWI while citizens enjoy ice skating or a cup of coffee.
Milwaukee War Memorial Center
Located next to the Milwaukee Art Museum's eye-catching Quadracci Pavilion, the War Memorial Center serves as a memorial to all of Milwaukee's servicemen throughout the years. It was designed by Finnish architect Eero Saarinen, who also designed the St. Louis Arch. Construction started in 1955 and was dedicated on November 11, 1957. The building serves multiple uses, an extension of the Milwaukee Art Museum's galleries in its lower level, office spaces for the county, and a collection of memorials to a variety of conflicts that involved Wisconsin military men.
The rear of the memorial complex features an eternal flame, surrounded by plaques with the names of Milwaukee servicemen killed in action from World War II to the present. However, affixed to one of the walls is a large plaque listing the names of the 750 servicemen and several female nurses who lost their lives during World War I. It prominently features an Art Deco angel engraved under a famous quotation from Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. Commissioned by American Legion Post No. 23, it was originally located at their meeting palce at 270 Prospect Ave (which was eventually razed) before being relocated to the Milwaukee War Memorial.
WWI Memorial Flagpole at Juneau Park
This next memorial is one that I did not realize was a WWI memorial until literally taking a closer look at it! I drive by this every day I go to work or take the bus to and from class at UWM, and it was not until this past February that I realized its true significance. After going to the art museum with some friends, we were waiting for the bus to take us back to the UWM campus. While waiting for the bus-and moving around to warm myself up on that cold evening-I took a closer look at the flagpole that graced the entrance to the War Memorial Center and saw inscribed on the base: "In Honor Of Those Who Served 1918-1918." What a pleasant surprise!
The flagpole itself was commissioned in 1927 by the Service Star Legion, an organization of mothers who had sons in the military. They originally wanted an "Iron Mike" statue that was common to many other cities across the country, but the county denied this request on the grounds of wanting a more unique memorial structure. A contest was started to create a design for this new memorial in 1933, and on August 1, 1934, a groundbreaking ceremony was held on the parkland at the intersection of 2nd, Wells, and Plankinton. The flagpole would be officially dedicated on November 11th of that year. However, the flagpole would be relocated to Juneau Park on June 14, 1979 in order to be closer to the War Memorial Center. It remains there to this day.
This is only a very brief list of World War One memorials in Milwaukee and there are certainly many more to be found across the city. You can find a more comprehensive list here. One might ask, why is there such a plethora of memorials to the same conflict in one city? Keep in mind that World War One was the first time in American history that a sizable force of American soldiers was sent to fight overseas. Many battles in Europe had KIA and WIA tolls surpassing those of the Civil War, even though that conflict ultimately claimed the lives of more Americans. (Remember, the Confederates saw themselves as Americans, too, but that's a discussion for another blog post!) The United States was involved in WWI for only 19 months, but the sacrifices made by its servicemen in that relatively brief period of time left an indelible mark on those who came home alive and their friends and loved ones. One hundred years later, we must not forget those sacrifices, as they shaped the history of this country to this day.
--Jordan
http://city.milwaukee.gov/cityclerk/hpc/War-Memorials-of-Milwaukee/Abraham-Lincoln-Memorial0Copy.htm#.WvW9uu8vzcs
http://www.32nd-division.org/history/ww1/32-ww1.html#Aisne-Marne
http://city.milwaukee.gov/cityclerk/hpc/War-Memorials-of-Milwaukee/WWI-Flagpole.htm#.WvXM7O8vzcs
This is only a very brief list of World War One memorials in Milwaukee and there are certainly many more to be found across the city. You can find a more comprehensive list here. One might ask, why is there such a plethora of memorials to the same conflict in one city? Keep in mind that World War One was the first time in American history that a sizable force of American soldiers was sent to fight overseas. Many battles in Europe had KIA and WIA tolls surpassing those of the Civil War, even though that conflict ultimately claimed the lives of more Americans. (Remember, the Confederates saw themselves as Americans, too, but that's a discussion for another blog post!) The United States was involved in WWI for only 19 months, but the sacrifices made by its servicemen in that relatively brief period of time left an indelible mark on those who came home alive and their friends and loved ones. One hundred years later, we must not forget those sacrifices, as they shaped the history of this country to this day.
--Jordan
http://city.milwaukee.gov/cityclerk/hpc/War-Memorials-of-Milwaukee/Abraham-Lincoln-Memorial0Copy.htm#.WvW9uu8vzcs
http://www.32nd-division.org/history/ww1/32-ww1.html#Aisne-Marne
http://city.milwaukee.gov/cityclerk/hpc/War-Memorials-of-Milwaukee/WWI-Flagpole.htm#.WvXM7O8vzcs
RSS Feed