Memorial

The town of Amatol, NJ was built in nine months, beginning in March 1918.  It was the workers' town for the Atlantic Loading Company - a WWI ammunition plant located two miles west.  Amatol was named for one of the explosives used in the plant's munitions production. It had a population of 10,000 people at its height.  By 1923, work had ended & most of the residents were gone. 

In planning the town, thought was given to its general attractiveness, as well as to the rapid construction of housing.  It was designed to be a 'town' rather than a group of buildings.  The designers of Amatol followed the principles of town planning used by the major architects of the time.  Amatol could accommodate a maximum population of 25,000.  Buildings were wood-frame with cement stucco on lath.  Interior walls were plaster.

A central commercial district featured shops & a large theatre.  A YMCA included a swimming pool, gymnasium w/ stage, bowling alley, billiard rooms, and refreshment & lounge rooms. 

Today, the town of Amatol has been reclaimed by forest & is managed by the Hammonton Creek Wildlife Management Area.  The aerial view photo in the Pictures Gallery shows the outlines of Amatol's street layout still visible in the ground surface. 

Narrative adapted from Shell Loading at Amatol, N.J.: Construction and Operation of a Shell Loading Plant and the Town of Amatol, N.J., 1919.

Photos courtesy of:
Shell Loading at Amatol, N.J.: Construction and Operation of a Shell Loading Plant and the Town of Amatol, N.J., 1919.

The following is an account of the dedication of the monument published in the New York Times issue of July 5, 1922:

Roses Fall on Monument: 

Jersey City Unveils Memorial  for 147 Soldiers Who Fell in War.

A monument to 147 soldiers from Jersey City who fell in the war was unveiled at Pershing Field, Jersey City, yesterday afternoon, as part of Jersey City's Independence Day exercises. A feature of the ceremony was the dropping of roses over the field during the services.

Lieutenant Stanton Weissenborn, a former army air pilot, circled above the crowd for two hours, and at frequent intervals dropped a rose until 147, one for each man who died, had fluttered down and made an immense bouquet at the foot of the monument.

The memorial is a life-size bronze figure of a woman, her arms filled with laurels. It is called, "Triumphant America." It was bought by the people of Jersey City through voluntary subscription.

Julius Beger, Chairman of the Monument Committee, presented the memorial to the Captain E. Fisk Post of the American Legion, and Arthur Liesemgang, post commander, presented it to the city. Lieutenant Louis Van Den Ecker, representing the French Consul General at New York; Dr. Foster Timothy of New York, representing British veterans, and Lieut. Col. Kerfoot, U.S.A., were among those who took part in the exercises.

Photos courtesy of:  NJ State Historic Preservation Office

Photos of the grave crosses for 9 of the 17 GA soldiers from the 151st Machine Gun Battalion buried in European Cemeteries.  A spreadsheet in the images lists all 17.

Websites for American Cemeteries – Aisne-Marne, Meuse-Argonne, Oise-Aisne, and St. Mihiel:

https://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries-memorials/europe/aisne-marne-american-cemetery#.Vz4f_bmh71I

https://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries-memorials/europe/meuse-argonne-american-cemetery#.Vz4gWbmh71I

https://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries-memorials/europe/oise-aisne-american-cemetery#.Vz4hALmh71I

https://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries-memorials/europe/st-mihiel-american-cemetery#.Vz4hO7mh71I

This monument was erected in 1925 to commemorate Hoboken's role as the US Army Port of Embarkation during World War I, and honor the 3 million troops who passed through Hoboken's port. The monument contains a bronze tablet mounted to the face of a granite boulder. It was erected by the Hoboken Assembly, Fourth Degree, of the Knights of Columbus. 

The current plaque was fabricated in 1978 and paid for by Hudson County. The boulder originally sat on Pier 4 near River Street. It was moved to River Street near Pier B in 1976. In 2002-03, with the completion of the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, it was moved to its present location at First Street & Pier A.

Narrative adapted from Hoboken Historical Museum website. 

Photo courtesy of: Hoboken Historical Museum

One side of the granite obelisk lists the local American Legion posts and the other bears a quotation from Teddy Roosevelt: "All daring and courage, all iron, endurance or misfortune, all devotion to the ideal of honor and glory of the flag makes for a finer and nobler type of humanhood."

The pipes supplying the spigots on each side of the shaft burst during the first winter in Kansas City and were permanently turned off. In 1958, when the city began a downtown redevelopment project, this fountain was moved to the intersection of Van Brunt Boulevard and Budd Park Esplanade. The pedestal fountain consists of a circular base, saucer receptacle and a rectangular shaft which rises to a height of six feet. Four eagles are carved into the corners at the summit.

Two bronze plaques illustrate soldiers on one side of the memorial, and sailors on the other. The artist, Robert Merrell Gage, from Topeka, Kansas, became Professor of Sculpture at the University of Southern California.

"Fabbys" refers to employees of the Newburgh Fabrikoid Factory, which produced artificial leather and later bought out by DuPont.

This 13-foot tall sculpture of Indiana limestone is of a standing male having elements of both a World War I Doughboy and a World War II GI. He wears battle fatigues with an unbuttoned shirt, dog tags, pants tucked into his boots, and a helmet.  His rifle is slung over his right shoulder and in his left hand he holds a grenade. Under his left foot is a snake, representing the enemy. This memorial was carved in 90 days by Frank Bowden at the studio of Adolph G. Wolter, and was dedicated on August 14, 1951. Its model was Lt. Hulon P. Whittington, who received the Congressional medal of Honor for his service in World War II.  

The inscription on this memorial, dedicated in 1979, reads:

In memory of
the Veterans
of World War I
who founded the
American Legion

At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker, including a World War II Memorial and Women of the Armed Forces. 

It is noted, that this classic Memorial Monument featuring a three rifle stack, with
helmets and bayonets on the top was originally created using real helmets and rifles.

AMERICAN MERCHANT MARINERS' MEMORIAL / DEDICATED TO ALL MERCHANT MARINERS WHO HAVE SERVED AMERICA FROM THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR THROUGH THE PRESENT DAY. / IN THE PROSECUTION OF WAR AND IN PURSUIT OF PEACEFUL COMMERCE, UNRECOGNIZED THOUSANDS HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES AT SEA. / THEIR SACRIFICES HAVE HELPED SECURE AMERICA'S LIBERTY AND PROSPERITY. / THE SCULPTURE WAS INSPIRED BY A PHOTOGRAPH OF THE VICTIMS OF A SUBMARINE ATTACK ON AN AMERICAN MERCHANT SHIP / DURING WORLD WAR II. LEFT TO THE PERILS OF THE SEA, THE SURVIVORS LATER PERISHED. / THIS MEMORIAL SERVES AS A MARKER FOR / AMERICA'S MERCHANT MARINERS RESTING IN THE UNMARKED OCEAN DEPTHS / IN RECOGNITION AND APPRECIATION / U.S. SENATOR JOHN O. BREAUX / U.S. REPRESENTATIVE WALTER B. JONES --- U.S. REPRESENTATIVE HELEN DELICH BENTLEY / U.S. MARITIME ADMINISTRATOR CAPTAIN WARREN G. LEBACK / AMERICA'S MARITIME LABOR --- AMERICA'S MERCHANT MARINERS --- AMERICA'S MARITIME INDUSTRY / BATTERY PARK CITY AUTHORITY / AMERICAN MERCHANT MARINERS' MEMORIAL INCORPORATED / LANE KIRKLAND, CHAIRMAN --- REAR ADMIRAL THOMAS A. KING, USMS (RET), PRESIDENT --- BOARD OF DIRECTORS & MEMBERS / GOVERNOR MARIO M. CUOMO, STATE OF NEW YORK --- MAYOR DAVID N. DINKINS, CITY OF NEW YORK

This is a bronze sculpture of an eagle, about 10 X 7 feet, with wings spread in a vertical direction. It is mounted on a pyramidal con­crete base. It was sculpted by Lyle E. Johnson, who gave it to the city in honor of the veterans of all wars. It was dedicated on May 30,1992.

At the right-hand corner (when facing it) of the Tobin Center is a WW1 Memorial that is practically hidden among the landscaping and shrubs of the auditorium. It is near the intersection of Auditorium Circle and Jefferson Street. It is a white marble monument about six feet tall with a prayerful woman (a mother) surrounded on her right side with several "doughboys" wearing World War I field uniforms, helmets and carrying their rifles with fixed bayonets. The inscription under this massive carving reads: “Honoring The Mothers Whose Sons Fought In The World War - Erected by San Antonio Chapter No. 2 - 1938”. 

The American War Mothers was founded in 1917 and was incorporated by an Act of Congress February 24, 1925. The AWM are a perpetual patriotic, 501(c) 4 non-profit, non-political, non-sectarian, non-partisan organization whose members are Mothers of children who have served or are serving in the Armed Services during a time of conflict.

This often unknown or overlooked organization of mothers has had an impact on our nation and on the welfare of our Armed Service members. This is a worthy war memorial for those from WWI on up to the present.

This is a full-length bronze figure of a Civil War soldier wear­ing an overcoat and cap. He holds a rifle, has a field bag on his right hip, and has a sword hanging on his left. Beneath him is a rectangu­lar stepped granite base. It was sculpted by Martin Milmore and was installed on December 9, 1871. It was formally dedicated on June 19, 1890, in memory of the citizen soldiers of Amherst.

It was rededicated on July 4,1985, with plaques listing veterans of the Spanish-American War, WWI, WWII, and the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

This is a life size bronze statue of a WWI infantryman whose right hand clasps the strap of a rifle which hangs at his side. His left hand rests at the top of a saber which hangs from his artillery belt. He wears a brimmed hat, leggings, and rolled-up shirtsleeves. On the granite exedra base is a relief of a wreath flanked by images of flames and ea­gles' heads. It was sculpted by David Cunningham Lithgow and ded­icated tin November 29, 1925, as a tribute to the 10 veterans of WWI. A "Big Bertha" cannon had sat in front of the sculpture, but it was used for salvage during WWII.

This memorial, erected in 1934, honors all World War veterans from Anderson County. The inscription reads:

In memory

of our
World War

Veterans
from
Anderson Co.

IN MEMORY OF / THE RESIDENTS OF ANNADALE / WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES / IN WORLD WAR II / WALTER BERNERT --- JAMES JOHNSON / RICHARD G. BLANKE --- PAUL R. LAGNO / JOHN DALLAND, SR. --- ALF L. LARSEN / IGNATIUS J. EDELKRAUT --- HARRY MALONE / WILLIAM J. HUGHES --- ROBERT E. OST / PETER STORHAUG /---/ KOREAN WAR / THEODORE GEORGE /