The Hiker (Newman)

For the statue of the same name by Theo Alice Ruggles Kitson, see The Hiker (Kitson).
The Hiker, Ypsilanti, Michigan

The Hiker is a statue created by Allen George Newman. Like Theo Alice Ruggles Kitson's statue of the same name, it was created to honor the American soldiers who took "long hikes in steaming jungles"[1] during the Boxer Rebellion, the Spanish–American War and the Philippine–American War. Originally displayed in the New York building at the 1907 Jamestown Exposition, the statue was chosen by several camps of the United Spanish War Veterans to be erected as war memorials.[2]

The statue, described as ”The best bronze soldier in America”[3] by sculptor and critic Lorado Taft, proved to be very popular, copies of it being located in numerous cities. The Jno. Williams, Inc. foundry in New York City was “given exclusive rights for casting the statue ‘in real bronze’ “ adding that the sculptor Newman would “with great pleasure give his advice gratis as to the proper form for the pedestal according to its environment.”[4]

The head is strongly poised on a sinewy column. The shoulders are broad, the chest full and deep. The flanks are thin, the hips narrow. The muscular legs show great marching capacity... There is a suggestion at the bow of the knee that he could ride a horse. His trusty Krag is not the first gun he has handled. You will not find that position in the manual, though the muzzle is elevated. It is equally handy to be aimed, clubbed or lunged. His head turns naturally a little to the right to balance the hat brim falling to the left. But the face is smooth shaven as was the mode—every part is strong, every feature clean cut, and all smoothly balanced. The lined cheeks show that in his 28 years he has lived. He is no saint. He is no molly-coddle. He is an American soldier. He is a disciplined man at arms, the wonder of the world today wherever such foregather. — Gen. Charles Wheaton Abbot, Jr., in his dedication of the statue at the North Burial Ground, Providence, Rhode Island, May 31, 1912.[5]

Locations

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Location City/State Coordinates Image Installed Notes/References
Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute Utica, New York 1904 Reduced size (28 inches)[6]
First bronze cast of Newman's plaster maquette.[5]
New-York Historical Society New York, New York 1904 Reduced size (28.25 x 10.75 x 10 inches)[7]
New York State Building, Jamestown Exposition Jamestown, Virginia 1907 (temporary) Heroic size (9 ft / 2 m), probably plaster
Current location unknown
Spanish–American War Memorial, North Burial Ground Providence, Rhode Island 41°50′43″N 71°24′31″W / 41.845286°N 71.408567°W / 41.845286; -71.408567 (Providence, RI) Memorial Day 1912 First installation of the statue as a memorial.[5]
Washington Park[8]
Relocated to Tompkinsville Park, 1925[9] 		Staten Island, New York 40°38′16″N 74°04′35″W / 40.63766°N 74.0765°W / 40.63766; -74.0765 (Staten Island, NY) 1912 Second installation of the statue as a memorial.[5]
Bayonne Park Bayonne, New Jersey 40°40′46″N 74°06′48″W / 40.67942°N 74.11325°W / 40.67942; -74.11325 (Bayonne, NJ) Labor Day 1912 Third installation of the statue as a memorial.[5]
Hiker Park Newark, New Jersey 40°43′19″N 74°11′36″W / 40.72185°N 74.1933°W / 40.72185; -74.1933 (Newark, NJ) 1914 Statue and plaques were stolen in January 1980. The torso was later recovered, but the statue deemed beyond repair. The base remains.[10]
Intersection of Memorial Parkway and Oneida Street Utica, New York 43°05′11″N 75°15′01″W / 43.08649°N 75.25025°W / 43.08649; -75.25025 (Utica, NY) 1915
In front of the Post Office Monongahela, Pennsylvania 40°12′09″N 79°55′36″W / 40.20239°N 79.92659°W / 40.20239; -79.92659 (Monongahela, PA) 1915
Roosevelt Plaza Buffalo, New York 42°53′19″N 78°52′24″W / 42.88852°N 78.8733°W / 42.88852; -78.8733 (Buffalo, NY) 1920
Grove Street Park Pawtucket, Rhode Island 41°52′45″N 71°22′39″W / 41.87912°N 71.37763°W / 41.87912; -71.37763 (Pawtucket, RI) 1922
Greenridge Cemetery Saratoga Springs, New York 43°04′17″N 73°47′10″W / 43.07144°N 73.78603°W / 43.07144; -73.78603 (Saratoga Springs, NY) 1923
Intersection of Hook and Hamilton Streets Southbridge, Massachusetts 42°04′37″N 72°02′03″W / 42.07705°N 72.03407°W / 42.07705; -72.03407 (Southbridge, MA) 1923
Wilcox Park Westerly, Rhode Island 41°22′40″N 71°49′39″W / 41.3778°N 71.82751°W / 41.3778; -71.82751 (Westerly, RI) 1924
Woodland Park Zoo Seattle, Washington 47°39′57″N 122°21′11″W / 47.66581°N 122.35309°W / 47.66581; -122.35309 (Seattle, WA) (Approximate) 1924 [11]
Schenley Drive at the Frick Fine Arts Building Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 40°26′31″N 79°57′02″W / 40.44185°N 79.95051°W / 40.44185; -79.95051 (Pittsburgh, PA) 1925 [4]
Court Square Woonsocket, Rhode Island 42°00′08″N 71°30′38″W / 42.00218°N 71.51064°W / 42.00218; -71.51064 (Woonsocket, RI) 1925
Central Riverside Park Wichita, Kansas 37°41′51″N 97°20′57″W / 37.69741°N 97.34929°W / 37.69741; -97.34929 (Wichita, KS) 1926
Schoellkopf Park Niagara Falls, New York 43°05′41″N 79°02′55″W / 43.09471°N 79.04867°W / 43.09471; -79.04867 (Niagara Falls, NY) 1926
Rockwell Park

Memorial Boulevard Park

Bristol, Connecticut 41°40′21″N 72°57′40″W / 41.6726°N 72.961°W / 41.6726; -72.961 (Bristol, CT (1929))

41°40′11″N 72°55′56″W / 41.66966°N 72.9322°W / 41.66966; -72.9322 (Bristol, CT (1983))

1929

1983

Bristol boasts two statues, the 1929 original and a 1983 copy.[12]
Buchanan Park Lancaster, Pennsylvania 40°02′39″N 76°19′20″W / 40.04407°N 76.32212°W / 40.04407; -76.32212 (Lancaster, PA) 1931 This is an example of Newman's other Hiker statue
Belle Isle Detroit, Michigan 42°20′15″N 82°59′33″W / 42.3376°N 82.99254°W / 42.3376; -82.99254 (Detroit, MI) 1932
Intersection of Parkard, Washtenaw Avenue and Forest Street Ypsilanti, Michigan 42°14′45″N 83°37′38″W / 42.2458°N 83.62728°W / 42.2458; -83.62728 (Ypsilanti, MI) 1940 [13]
Oakwood Cemetery Beloit, Wisconsin 42°30′26″N 89°01′01″W / 42.507158°N 89.0169°W / 42.507158; -89.0169 (Beloit, Wis.)
1926
"The Hiker", Spanish-American War memorial

Reliefs

Bronze relief Spanish–American War memorial in Bowling Green, Kentucky

A number of Spanish–American War memorials include a bronze relief showing Newman's Hiker in front of the battleship Maine. Just under the statue's feet is engraved, "Hiker of '98." Included on the relief is President McKinley's quote, "You triumphed over obstacles which would have overcome men less brave and determined."

Some of these relief memorials also carry the statement, "Every Man a Volunteer," and may also include the number 458,151. The total number of U.S. service personnel engaged in the war with Spain (proper), the Philippine–American War and the Boxer Rebellion numbered 458,151.[28][29]

These bronze plaques were made by the Lamb Seal and Stencil Company,[15] which was founded in 1900 by Richard L. Lamb (1871-1960). Lamb was a British immigrant who had fought in the Siege of Santiago in Cuba during the Spanish–American War.[30]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Hiker (Newman).
  1. ^ Rubenstein, Charlotte Streifer, American Women Sculptors: A History of Women Working in Three Dimensions, G. K. Hall and Co. Boston, 1990. p. 104
  2. ^ "Spanish War Memorial". Norwich Bulletin. Norwich, Connecticut. March 17, 1915. p. 7. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  3. ^ Taft, Lorado (1925). The History of American Sculpture. New York: Macmillan. p. 570.
  4. ^ a b Evert, Marlyn and Vernon Gay, photographs, Discovering Pittsburgh's Sculpture, University of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, 1983 pp. 181-182
  5. ^ a b c d e Fred F. Poyner IV, "Allen George Newman (1875–1940)," Seattle Public Sculptors (McFarland Press, 2017), pp. 70-81.
  6. ^ "The Hiker, (sculpture)". Art Inventories Catalog. Library of Congress. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  7. ^ "The Hiker, (sculpture)". Art Inventories Catalog. Library of Congress. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  8. ^ "Spanish American War Memorial, (sculpture)". Art Inventories Catalog. Library of Congress. Retrieved January 11, 2018.
  9. ^ "Tompkinsville Park News - Tompkinsville Park Is June's Park Of The Month : NYC Parks". www.nycgovparks.org.
  10. ^ "The Hiker, (sculpture)". Art Inventories Catalog. Library of Congress. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  11. ^ "Chronological History of Woodland Park Zoo". About Us. Woodland Park Zoo. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  12. ^ "The Hiker". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  13. ^ Kvaran, Einar Einarsson, An Annotated Inventory of Outdoor Sculpture in Washtenaw County, Independent Study, Eastern Michigan University, 1989
  14. ^ "Michigan City Spanish War Veterans Memorial". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  15. ^ a b "Hiker of '98, (sculpture)". Save Outdoor Sculpture, Georgia survey, 1994. Library of Congress. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  16. ^ "Hiker of '98, (sculpture)". Save Outdoor Sculpture, Georgia survey, 1994. Library of Congress. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  17. ^ "Dedicated to the Veterans of 1898 - 1902". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  18. ^ "Spanish–American War Monument - Salem, Oregon". Waymarking. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  19. ^ "Spanish War Marker". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  20. ^ "Dedicated to the Veterans of 1898 - 1902". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  21. ^ "Hiker of '98, (sculpture)". Save Outdoor Sculpture, Georgia survey, 1994. Library of Congress. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  22. ^ "Spanish American War Monument". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  23. ^ "The Veterans of 1898–1902". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  24. ^ "Dedicated to the Veterans of 1898 -1902". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  25. ^ "Rough Riders". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  26. ^ "Dedicated to the Veterans of 1898 to 1902". The Historical Marker database. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  27. ^ "Long Beach Spanish–American War Memorial". The National War Memorial Registry. The Memorial Day Foundation. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  28. ^ Wilson, Theophilus L. (1940). "Clarion County in the Spanish–American War". Clarion Republican. p. 74. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  29. ^ The Pension Roll as Affected by the War with Spain in 1898. Washington, DC: U.S. Army War College. 1915. p. 7. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  30. ^ Kelly, John (August 27, 2016). "Ever wondered about the big plaque of Alexander Hamilton near Dupont Circle?". Washington Post. Retrieved December 15, 2016.