Property Record
MADISON AVE (MCCOY PARK)
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | McCoy Park WWII Statue |
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| Other Name: | Spirit of the American Doughboy |
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| Reference Number: | 118765 |
| Location (Address): | MADISON AVE (MCCOY PARK) |
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| County: | Jefferson |
| City: | Fort Atkinson |
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| Year Built: | 1929 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1998 |
| Historic Use: | statue/sculpture |
| Architectural Style: | NA (unknown or not a building) |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Metal |
| Architect: | E.M. Viquesney |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | This monument of a WWI foot soldier was one of two copyrighted doughboy designs attributable to sculptor E.M. Viquesney. Approximately 157 Viquesney doughboys are known to exist throughout the U.S.; five remain in Wisconsin. Located at the southeast corner of the park, the doughboy is holding a rifle in his left hand and a hand grenade in the right. The entire sculpture rests on a raised base that is faced with natural stone. A 1929 bronze dedication plaque (AHI #118766) is located at the foot of the statue and reads "MCCOY PARK/Sponsored by/American Legion and/ Spanish War Veterans/DEDICATED/to the/DEAD SOLDIER." An inscribed ribbon along the top of the plaque bears the dates of 1898 and 1917-1918. |
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| Bibliographic References: | Smithsonian Inventory of American Sculpture. Spangler, Christian. "Fort Doughboy Dedicated in '29," Daily Jefferson County Union, August 22, 1991. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |