photograph by vance lauderdale
Standing more than eight feet tall, The Hiker, erected in 1956, represents the veterans who saw battle in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and The Phillipines.
Dear Vance: Who carved the statue that’s part of the Spanish-American War Memorial at Central and East Parkway? — G.T., Memphis.
Dear G.T.: “Remember the Maine!” was the rallying cry for thousands of Americans when the U.S. Navy battleship with that name was blown up in the harbor of Havana, Cuba, on the night of February 15, 1898. Our country had sent an imposing fleet to Cuba in hopes of quelling the uprising between citizens there and the Spanish government then controlling that island, along with Puerto Rico and — all the way around the world — the Philippines. Some historians, however, believe the presence of the U.S.S. Maine was calculated to draw the United States into a war. At any rate, the mighty warship’s explosion — the exact cause of which was never determined — and the resulting loss of some 300 lives propelled the U.S. into the Spanish-American War, which would take more than 50,000 casualties on both sides before Spain surrendered in 1902.
That’s only a quick summary of a very complicated global conflict, but I had to set the stage, so to speak, before I could answer the query from G.T. I’ll try to do that now, in my rambling way.
photograph by vance lauderdale
More than 50 versions of The Hiker statue are located across the country. The Memphis park features a graceful base carved from blue granite.
In March 15, 1935, The Commercial Appeal noted that the famous “Doughboy” statue in Overton Park paid tribute to the lost soldiers of World War I, but “the Spanish-American War Veterans have been overlooked.” As a result, the newspaper announced plans “for a belated tribute to our neglected heroes, many of which are prominent in the business and civic life of this city.” Already, precisely $71 had been raised, for the purchase of a statue to be erected in Jefferson Davis Park (now Mississippi River Park).
Two weeks later, the paper reported that funds had only reached $129 — with quite a ways to go if the group behind this effort — the Benjamin Wright Camp #3 of the Spanish War Veterans — hoped to reach their goal of $2,500, the estimated cost for purchasing a monument. Two weeks later, the CA reported that donations were “far short of the goal,” while also mentioning, “While the site has not been selected, the prevailing location now favors Overton Park.”
Nothing happened for almost two years, when The Commercial Appeal again urged its readers to continue with their donations, complaining, “For some reason, the Spanish War veteran has never received from the American public the recognition he deserves.” The same story also noted that the memorial would now be located at Linden Circle.
Well, by this time, Americans were more concerned about the potential of yet another global conflict, this one in Europe and Asia, a fear that came true with the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor. After that came the Korean War. The Spanish-American War that took place half a century earlier had largely been forgotten, as its veterans passed away over the years.
Fred Bauer gets credit for first conceiving of a memorial, way back in the 1930s, and finally brought it to completion with his “secret weapon”: Namely, from his own funds he contributed the money to purchase an eight-foot bronze statue and complete the memorial.
So Memphians were probably surprised to pick up the June 8, 1956, Commercial Appeal and learn that work was nearly finished on the war memorial. An entirely new location had been decided — the “unnamed park” at the southwest corner of Central and East Parkway. The memorial would feature a bronze statue called The Hiker, so named because that’s what American troops called themselves during the war, mounted on an impressive blue granite base. And all this came about because of the “secret weapon” of Fred Bauer.
Bauer was certainly a remarkable — and persistent — fellow. Born and raised (at least, by some accounts) in St. Louis, at the age of 14, he was so determined to fight in the Spanish-American War that he stowed away on a troop ship bound for the Philippines. (It’s not clear how he got from Missouri to a ship sailing across the Pacific.) Newspapers reported that when sailors found the young stowaway, they determined he was too young to join the armed forces, but somebody had to take care of the youngster, and he refused to return home. So, when they landed in the Philippines, they handed him over to the Army, who made him an “unofficial mascot” of the 16th Infantry and gave him a bugle. “I was chief bugler, but that didn’t mean anything,” Bauer later told reporters. “I fought with them the moment we landed. I carried a gun just like the rest of them.”
Apparently, he even brought along his own weapons. “When I finally met my commander [I had] an old Mauser carbine, two six-shooters, and a bolo knife strapped to my belt,” he told the newspapers, years later. “The officers wondered who the ‘walking arsenal’ was, and they decided to enlist me despite my age.” According to newspaper accounts, Bauer became the youngest American to serve in the war, fighting in the Philippines and later in China.
After the war, Bauer somehow found his way to Memphis, where he took a job with the U.S. Battery and Electrical Company before opening Bauer’s Auto Parts at 383 Monroe. That business was apparently a success. By 1930, city directories show that Bauer and his wife, Victoria, had purchased one of the first homes constructed in the newly developed Chickasaw Gardens. He quickly befriended other veterans of the war and helped establish the local Spanish War Veterans association. In fact, Bauer gets credit for first conceiving of a memorial, way back in the 1930s, and finally brought it to completion with his “secret weapon”: Namely, from his own funds he contributed the money to purchase an eight-foot bronze statue and complete the memorial.
When the park — renamed Spanish War Memorial Park — was dedicated on December 2, 1956, Bauer’s granddaughter was photographed unveiling The Hiker. Several dozen veterans of the war attended the dedication, which included patriotic speeches by Mayor Edmund Orgill; Roane Waring, president of the Memphis Street Railway; Harry Pierotti, chairman of the Memphis Park Commission; and Charles E. Jordan, chaplain of the Benjamin Wright Camp #3. Jordan noted, “This is a day of both sadness and joy,” reminding those attending that the line of Spanish-American War veterans “is thinning every day, but it is a joyful day for those of us who are left behind to unveil this statue.”
photograph courtesy memphis public libraries
When this unsightly railroad trestle was removed, the space was used for the Spanish War Memorial. This view is looking north along East Parkway. The new park would have been to the left, at the intersection with Central.
I should mention that corner was never designed to be a park. In the early 1900s, it was actually the roadway for the Union Pacific Railroad. It’s hard to imagine today, but a freight train linked the Sargent Yards in southwest Memphis with other lines farther east, and the route carried the railroad tracks diagonally across East Parkway — and straight through the campus of Christian Brothers College. It was not only an eyesore, but an ear-sore (if there’s such a word). The tracks were elevated over the traffic lanes at the intersection, but that didn’t stop Memphians from crashing into the support columns on a regular basis. The tracks and crossing were finally removed in the 1960s.
Now I have to break some sad news to readers. The Hiker statue is not an original carving. Instead, it’s a bronze copy, which was ordered from a catalog of monuments and memorials produced by the Gorham Company of Providence, Rhode Island. In fact, The Hiker proved so popular that Wikipedia keeps a list of more than 50 versions that are still standing in cities across America. They mainly vary in size, and in the styles of the base.
The original statue, which was installed at the University of Minnesota in 1906, was designed by Theodora Alice Ruggle Kitson (1871-1932), from Brookline, Massachusetts. Theo, as she signed her works, was a supremely talented artist. At age 18, she received an honorable mention at the Salon des Artistes Français — “becoming the youngest woman, and the first American, ever to receive this honor.” Years later, she became the first woman elected to the National Sculpture Society. She seemed to have a special penchant for military tributes, known for their historically accurate details. Anyone wishing to see more of her work needs only to drive to Vicksburg National Military Park, featuring more than 50 sculptures and plaques she designed.
Fred Bauer passed away in 1977 at the age of 93. He was laid to rest in Memorial Park, and his simple military-style marker gives his name, rank, and the years of his birth and death. Not a word mentions the Spanish-American War, to which he had devoted some eight decades of his life.
Got a question for Vance?
Email: askvance@memphismagazine.com
Mail: Vance Lauderdale, Memphis Magazine, P.O. Box 1738, Memphis, TN 38101
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