Belmar 'Doughboy' statue severely damaged by vandals

Erik Larsen | Asbury Park Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Belmar Doughboy Statue As the nation commemorates the centennial of World War I this year, Belmar's monument to its sons who served in "the war to end all wars" is badly vandalized.

BELMAR - The borough's World War I monument, honoring its sons who served and died in the war to end all wars, has been severely damaged by an act of vandalism, Mayor Matt Doherty said.

The defacement to Belmar's "Spirit of the American Doughboy," comes during a time of centennial commemorations for America's 1917 entry into the First World War — in which 116,516 U.S. service members perished and 204,002 were injured.

The statue, located in Doughboy Park on West Railroad Avenue, depicts a U.S. infantryman advancing through "no man's land," amid shattered tree stumps and barbed wire. In his left hand he clutches a rifle and with his raised right hand he throws a grenade.

One or more vandals attempted to break off the statue's rifle, which you can see in the video above, tearing away its scabbard and loosening the sculpture from its pedestal.

It was not clear when the vandalism took place.

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Doherty said the destruction is so significant, the Belmar Historical Society plans to organize a fundraising campaign to pay for the repairs, with a formal announcement expected soon.

"The doughboy statue is a treasure in our town that has been a constant reminder of America's tremendous sacrifice in World War I," Doherty said. "The careless vandalism that occurred must be repaired and we must restore it to its rightful glory."

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The statue and its park, located between Route 35 and the NJ Transit's North Jersey Coast Line, underwent a major restoration a decade ago, which was financed through the sale of brick pavers around the monument.

Back then, the Doughboy also had sustained damage from vandalism, as well as from the elements and time.

The pedestal of the doughboy statue includes a plaque bearing the names of the 102 service members from Belmar who served in World War I, including two who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their service a century ago.

Created by Ernest Moore Viquesney and dedicated in Belmar on May 24, 1930, "The Spirit of the American Doughboy" was a mass-produced war monument popular with small town America in the 1920s and 1930s, particularly on the East Coast.

There are 136 statues just like it scattered across the United States. New Jersey has eight, including in Fair Haven, Matawan, Middletown and Perth Amboy.

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On Tuesday, military veteran Rodney Goddard, 58, of Middleburg, Florida, stopped at the Belmar doughboy on his Yamaha FJR 1300 motorcycle — the seventh day of a solo, 5,000-mile "Tour of Honor" trip around the country to visit as many monuments as possible.

Goddard said that despite the vandalism, it was clear to him that Belmar had taken good care of its doughboy — given how well preserved the monument was compared to other doughboy statues he had visited.

He said vandalism against such monuments was not uncommon.

"They don't appreciate the military or what people in the past have done for our country anymore," Goddard said. "Or, it's just kids being kids, doing stupid stuff."

Erik Larsen: 732-682-9359 or elarsen@gannettnj.com