Spirit of The American Doughboy Virtual Rewards 3.0
"The Most Famous World War I Memorial Statue that Few Have Ever Heard of"
WWl Doughboy statue E. M. Viquesney often boasted in his ads that "over 300" of his "Spirit of the American Doughboy" memorials were placed across the country, and that at least one of them could be found in every state of the Union" (48 at the time). But the statue, or records of formerly existing ones, have only been found in 39 states.
The Doughboy in Wheeling was dedicated May 30, 1931. (The date of November 11, 1931, cited in the Smithsonian IAS file is incorrect. Thanks to Seán P. Duffy, Programming, Publicity, & Archives Coordinator, Ohio County Public Library, for the correction
The statue is affectionately known locally as "Lester" (named in honor of an actual Doughboy from Wheeling, Wagoner Lester Scott, KIA in WWI).
It is one of the most reproduced life-size sculptures in the United States is a memorial statue of a World War I American soldier. Our soldiers in that war were popularly called “Doughboys,” and the statue’s proper name is “Spirit of The American Doughboy.” Its sculptor was Ernest Moore “Dick” Viquesney, a son and grandson of French immigrant sculptors. In total, including originals made in Viquesney’s lifetime, replacements of originals, copies, those in storage, etc., about 140 are known to be standing in courthouse lawns, town squares, parks, cemeteries, and other locations, and in storage, all across America.
Very few local residents in most of its locations have ever known its full proper name or the name of its sculptor. In most locations, it’s merely called “The Doughboy” or “Our Doughboy.” Still, it’s the focal point of over ten- percent of the World War I memorials in the U. S., exclusive of memorials that are limited to merely being plaques. Some people even believe that, except for the Statue of Liberty, its publicly displayed replications are collectively the “most seen” sculpture in the country.
November 8, 2019: The statue is now off its base and was sent to Detroit, MI, to be restored.
December 4, 2020: The Wheeling Doughboy was restored and reinstalled, minus the bayonet.
May 14, 2021: The Wheeling Doughboy was rededicated on Memorial Day, May 31 2021
**** TWO CACHE REQUIRMENTS to log this cache as found. ****
# 1 Post a picture of youself or a picture of your GPS and or PHONE with the doughboy in the background and
# 2 you will need to send me the 3rd number on the plaque posted on the wall at the exit of the park. You can walk to the exit to get the needed number. It is a very short walk from the Doughboy to the exit.
You can't see the number from the area of the doughboy.
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.