The Battle of the Bulge Monument
Wolfe's Pond Park
"This is undoubtedly the greatest battle of the War and will, I believe, be regarded In the early morning hours of December 16, 1944, three powerful German armies plunged headlong into the hills and forest of the Ardennes Region of Belgium and Luxembourg, attacking thinly held American lines along an 85 mile front. Their goal was to split and trap American and British forces and eventually reach the Port of Antwerp. Fighting in dense fog, snow, and bitter cold, American forces stubbornly resisted all-out German attacks, stalled their advance, and completely upset their timetable. After penetrating more than 40 miles into Allied territory, forming a salient, or Bulge, the German advance was finally stopped on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1944. Bitter fighting continued until January 25, 1945, when the Bulge was finally erased and the original front line restored. The Allies were now poised for the final assault into the German heartland and final victory on V-E Day, May 8, 1945. At the entrance to this memorial, an interpretive sign with a multicolored map graphically tells the story of the Battle of the Bulge. The two large black granite slabs, symbolic of holding the battle line, feature an insert of a dichroic glass star that represents hope and peace. The glass changes color throughout the course of the day. A granite wall contains the shoulder patch logos of each of the 45 units that fought in the battle, and a memorial text at its base provides a background for the slabs. The memorial plaza includes a ceramic Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge emblem at its center, surrounded by cobblestone rings. Seven of the cobblestone rings were donated by the people of Luxemburg and Belgium. The monument was created through a joint effort of Parks and the Veterans of the Battle of Bulge. Council Member Fiala allocated $450,000 in 1998 for its construction. Architect Anthony Moody, a member of the veterans association, together with Mike Browne, Parks Deputy Chief of Design, conceived the original design of the monument, paying tribute to the 600,000 American men and women who participated in this epic battle. Construction began in October of 2001 and was completed in December of the same year.
as an ever famous American Victory."
-Sir Winston Churchill, addressing the House of Commons
Friday, Dec 14, 2001