1900s Sailor - Westfield, IL
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 39° 27.285 W 087° 59.811
16S E 414235 N 4367716
Very neat World War I memorial in a dying town's city park.
Waymark Code: WMKXDA
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 06/08/2014
Views: 4
County of art: Clark County
Location of art: W. Cherry St., city park, Westfield
Title of this monument: Sea and Camp Memorial
This monument has all the writing on the left side. The upper section lists the names from this town that served overseas. The lower list, on the left base, is for the names of camp soldiers. No other text is on the monument.
Monument is in the city park, deeper in and to the left of the veterans memorial.
"It should come as no surprise that the enlisted men who were sent overseas became heroes in the local communities, especially those who died. Westfield, for example, was well known at the time for holding numerous rallies promoting patriotism and Liberty Bond and Red Cross drives. In all, despite being a small community of a few hundred, Westfield sent 62 men overseas to fight the war. There were also 36 more men who were in service but never left for war.
One soldier that represented Westfield in the war effort was Ralph Weeden. Weeden was killed in the battlefields of France on October 6, 1918. It was noted that twenty other Westfield men served in the same Company and because of “their close association for the last eighteen months” the knowledge of his death “cast a shadow of gloom, sorrow and foreboding over the community.”
Weeden’s loss brought great sadness to the small community. Not only was he just 19 years of age, but was also known by everyone in Westfield." ~ Clark County IN WWI