Oak Park - River Forest War Memorial - Oak Park, IL
Posted by: 
adgorn
N 41° 53.369 W 087° 47.717
16T E 434022 N 4637811
This monument in Scoville Park, was dedicated on Armistice (now Veteran's) Day, November 11, 1925, with Vice President C.G. Dawes and General Pershing in attendance. This bronze and granite memorial was designed by Gilbert P. Riswold.
Waymark Code: WM7GEZ
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 10/23/2009
Views: 2
12,000 people attended the dedication ceremonies.
The total height is 21' 3". Columbia, armed and in the attitude of peace by sheathing her sword, is the dominant feature. Bronze life sized statues of a soldier, sailor and airman are in the front. A 5' wide x 15' high tablet in the back list the names of the 56 local men who fell in battle in WW1 plus the 2446 others who served. (Among them is the name, “Hemingway, E.M. - that is Oak Park born Ernest Hemingway who served as an ambulance driver, afterwards immortalizing his experiences in "A Farewell to Arms.") The bronzework was done by Jules Berchem & Son.
From Arts Inventory site:
Approx. H. 16 ft. x Diam. 8 ft.; Base: approx. H. 20 ft. x Diam. 9 ft.
(Signature on butt of rifle on central bronze figure) (Front of base:) ERECTED BY THE CITIZENS/ OF OAK PARK AND RIVER FOREST, ILLINOIS/IN HONOR OF THE MEN OF THIS COMMUNITY/WHO TOOK PART IN THE WORLD WAR/1914-1918 (Several plaques on horizontal surfaces of base, list names of war veterans). signed
Three bronze male figures, a soldier, a sailor, and an airman, grouped together in front of a granite stele adorned with a relief depicting a female figure of Columbia in the act of sheathing her sword. The sculpture rests atop a two-tiered granite base. Around the base are plaques listing the names of World War I veterans who enlisted from Oak Park and River Forest, and plaques listing those who gave their lives.
The memorial was erected by public subscription in honor of those from Oak Park and River Forest who made the supreme sacrifice of giving their lives during World War I. The model for the female figure of Columbia was the artist's wife.
The current restoration project began in 2009 and is scheduled for completion in spring 2010.
Scoville Park is also interesting because it includes the location of a continental divide. An informational sign is evident in the park. See my nearby waymark WM6XXQ for more information.
TITLE: Oak Park - River Forest War Memorial
ARTIST(S): Riswold, Gilbert P., b. 1881, sculptor.
DATE: 1924. Dedicated Nov. 25, 1925. (should read Nov 11)
MEDIUM: Bronze and granite.
CONTROL NUMBER: IAS 87580144
Direct Link to the Individual Listing in the Smithsonian Art Inventory: [Web Link]
PHYSICAL LOCATION:
Scoville Park
approx 836 W. Lake Street
Oak Park, IL USA
DIFFERENCES NOTED BETWEEN THE INVENTORY LISTING AND YOUR OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH:
None, other than the small error in the dedication day. Source for correct day is an article in the American Stone Trade magazine of December 1925, pg 24 entitled "A Chicago War Memorial" downloaded from http://www.oakparkparks.com/NewsandInformation/currentprojects_ScovilleMonument.htm
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