This is the third in the
series of New Jersey towns that feature a once popular statue honoring veterans
from World War I. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the
conflict and the mass produced "Spirit of the American Doughboy" is a
pressed copper statue designed by E.M. Viquesney. Brochures from Viquesney's
company boasted 300 of the Spirit statues were erected during the 1920's and
1930's and that there was at least one in every state although these numbers
are now considered inflated. The Smithsonian has a list of approximately 150
statues still standing and the Garden State has eight of them.
Today's visit is to
Dover in Morris County. So far this is the most picturesque memorial I have
seen in the series. Set in pastoral Hurd Park on the western edge of Dover, the
Spirit of the American Doughboy statue is set up high atop a cairn of roughly
hewn stones accenting its dramatic pose. The memorial is well tended and not an
afterthought or relic. The statue is brilliantly polished and a fence surrounds
the cairn and a stone wall provides a seating area. Lights cut deep crevices on
the Doughboy at night giving him an ethereal, battle-ready appearance. During
the day idyllic hills and cherry blossoms of Hurd Park lend serenity and
soberness to this memorial to our fallen soldiers.
Sadly, despite its
beauty the statue and memorial were victims of many acts of vandalism over the
years. At one point the statue was ripped from its pedestal and thrown into a
nearby creek. Extensive renovations involving the entire community eventually
replaced the statue to its current glory. On the stones forming the pedestal
are 38 bronze plaques, each bearing the name of a soldier from the community
who gave his life in the war.
 |
| Hurd Park, Dover, NJ |
THINKING of VISITING?
LOCATION
Several highways serve
Dover. Routes 80 and 10 and 46 travel east/west through the city and Route 15’s
southern terminus is in Dover at Route 46. In fact, Hurd Park is right on Route
46 and the statue can be seen from the roadway, but you’ll want to get out and
walk up to the memorial and perhaps stroll the idyllic grounds. You can’t park in front of the memorial. Look
for spots on Park Heights Avenue, West Blackwell Street, or perhaps Princeton
Avenue; just be careful with the latter though because you’ll have to cross
Route 46 to get to the memorial.
HISTORY and ATTRACTIONS
Once a port on the
Morris Canal, an engineering marvel that used water driven inclined planes to
carry coal over the northern New Jersey hills, Dover is around 25 miles west of
Newark. The canal was abandoned in the 1920’s and subsequently filled in,
including the boat basin in the town which is now called JFK Commons Park. There are preserved sections though and it is possible to hike along the canal
in nearby Wharton at Hugh Force Park to glimpse and stroll along a bit of
American commerce history.
For further reading on
the technology of the Morris Canal:
On Saturday, August 23rd
the Wharton Canal Day will be held at the park. The well attended event offers
music, arts and crafts, food, fireworks, a Civil War encampment and
blacksmithing demonstrations and free boat and kayak rides on the canal.
Wharton’s Hugh Force Park is a little more than 2 miles north of Hurd Park in
Dover.
Iron ore was once so
plentiful in the area that it could be collected off the ground. In sporadic
operation for nearly 300 years dating from the early 1700’s the mines and
forges in the Dover vicinity once supplied much of the iron used as shot and
ordnance in the American Revolutionary War. The Hibernia mine was the name
given to a series of independently run mines all along the same ore vein and
tons of ore were taken from the earth through mines like: Andover, Beach Glen,
DeCamp and Wharton. If you’re interested in reading more:
It is possible to visit
some of these mines, but if you’re neither a spelunker nor a caver your best
bet is to visit the Sterling Hill Museum in nearby Ogdensburg, NJ about 16
miles north along Route 15. They offer tours. The Sterling Hill Museum was a
must visit during my grammar school days.
There is a military
presence in the area as Picatinny Arsenal is a few miles outside of Dover north
on Route 15. This research facility “specializes in the research, development,
acquisition and lifecycle management of advanced conventional weapon systems
and advanced ammunition.” Begun as a powder depot in the 1880’s, Picatinny
Arsenal has been important to the military effort throughout its history
evolving as needed and was integral in the testing of rocket engine technology. Sadly as civilians
visits to Picatinny are prohibited, although I once camped there as a Boy Scout.
In 1926 there was a devastating explosion that leveled the joint. PICATINNY ARSENAL
In February, 1977 I was fortunate to see the Ramones at a joint in Dover called The Showplace. The Ramones only had two albums in their arsenal at the time and we got to hear Sheena is a Punk Rocker, perhaps for the first time as that would not be released until Rockets to Russia in November of 1977. Well, the Showplace is no longer a concert venue, but there is a strip joint as well as a recording studio at the South Salem Street address. The strip joint isn't well received by some; a recent review on google+ said: "Smells like a rotten corpse soaking in tuna blood."
Joey Ramone would be pleased.
FOOD AND DRINK
In the 2000 census over half the
population of Dover was listed as Hispanic, with Mexican, Colombian, Dominican
and Puerto Rican as the prevalent nationalities in the town. Thankfully all of
their tasty cuisines are equally prevalent in town, mostly along the main
business district area of Blackwell Street.
Near Blackwell is a good honest Irish bar with normal fare and beer selections.
The Quiet Man is at 64 East McFarlan Street.
If you don’t mind driving
out of Dover, there are several good places to eat and drink in the nearby
towns of Wharton and Randolph.
On North Main Street in
Wharton is Hot Rods Real Pit BBQ. According to the Star-Ledger and Forbes Hot
Rods has some of the best ribs in NJ and the place also has a respectable list
of craft beers.
HOT RODS BBQ, WHARTON, NJ
The Knotty Pine Pub is a
great dive bar in Wharton and serves honest food at great prices. They are up
on Route 15 near the Costo’s.
In
Randolph along Route 10, but less than 10 miles away from Hurd Park are two
destination-worthy places, at least for beer. Both offer food at “normal”
prices. Go for the beer and perhaps the small plate selections.
The
Morris Tap and Grill offers a dazzling array of beers, foreign and domestic and Nicole’s Ten boasts
100+ craft beer, mostly in bottles.
THE MORRIS TAP AND GRILL
Thanks for reading. I hope you find this interesting and informative. Feel free to leave a comment here or send me an email perhaps detailing your travels and if you send pictures of your visit to any of our suggested destinations we'll try to include them in our future entries at VACATIONS FROM HOME. And, always remember to like us on Facebook!
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