By Judi Shellabarger
Tucked away high from one of Memphis busiest intersections at Central and East Parkway, Spanish War Memorial Park is an often-neglected part of Cooper-Young, a forgotten reminder of a forgotten war in a forgotten corner of our neighborhood.
The Cooper-Young Garden Club, however, has been working to change all that. Recognizing the beauty of our neighborhood landscaped park, its historical importance, and its artistic value to the community, the Cooper Young Garden Club formally adopted the Spanish War Park through Memphis City Beautiful in 2017. Community members work to keep the park clean and well maintained. Fourteen new trees have been added to the park over the last year. White and pink flowering dogwoods, rough leaf dogwood, apple serviceberry, American hornbeam, persimmon, pawpaw, and Japanese cryptomeria all are newly added to the landscape.
The park itself has an interesting history. Up until the middle of the 20th century, the southeast corner of Central and East Parkway had been part of a Union Pacific rail line, the southern anchor of a bridge that spanned over the intersection and through Christian Brothers University. By 1956, the rail line had been abandoned and the corner had become a city park.
That year, the nameless park at the corner of Central and East Parkway finally got a name and its iconic landmark. Mayor Edmund Orgill formally accepted the figure of “The Hiker” from the Benjamin Wright Camp No. 3 of the Spanish-American War Veterans as the city gave belated recognition to the men who had fought in the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. Memphian Fred Bauer, Sr., who donated a large share of the funds for the statue asked the park commission to name the land of which the statue stands Spanish War Memorial Park. Bauer, one of the youngest Spanish-American War Veterans in the United States, was the commander of the Department of Tennessee, United States Spanish-American War Veterans. He was elected to this post June 9, 1934.
Upon the declaration of war in 1898, three companies of the Tennessee Volunteer Infantry were recruited in Memphis, 850 men from West Tennessee. The war lasted from 1989 to 1902, taking about 200 American lives.
Bauer was 14 when he ran away from home to join the Spanish-American War. He rode a freight car to San Francisco where he was befriended by soldiers who hid him in a 4 x 3 mess box bound for Manila. His soldier friends made him bugler and unofficial mascot. They gave him a cut down uniform, knives, six shooters, and a rifle. When found in Honolulu, officials planned to deport him back to the states, but he escaped and hid in a coal bunker to Manila. Again, he was held for deportation and escaped. Because he was an orphan, Lt. Sorley of the 16th U.S. Infantry became his legal guardian. He served 3 years and 27 days with the 16th U.S. Infantry. After the Spanish-American War, his battalion was sent to China to quell the Boxer rebellion.
Bauer served on the motion picture examining Board, Memphis-Shelby County Board of Equalization, and as chairman of the Federal Re-Employment Bureau during the Depression. He owned Bauer’s Auto Parts Company in Memphis until he passed away at 93 in 1977.
He was largely responsible for the erection of the Spanish-American War memorial monument “The Hiker.” The statue was sculpted by noted war memorialist Theo. A. R. Kitson. Her first casting was erected in Minnesota in 1906. The design proved so popular that over the decades at least 50 copies of the statue were erected around the country
Bauer spent 25 years raising funds for the Memphis memorial with almost half of the money donated by him. The memorial was built without any federal, state, or city money. This statue is a gift to the city by the United Spanish War Veterans.
“The Hiker” monument cost $7,868 dollars and was finished in 1958. The bronze monument is mounted against a curved stone wall and was dedicated in 1961. In 1970, Bauer paid for the flagpole to be installed. The Memphis Park Commission installed the pole at a cost of $400.
“The Hiker” statue is 8 feet 5 inches tall. It was cast in bronze by the Gorham Co. in Providence, RI. The statue stands on a base of blue granite and faces east. The statue was designed and placed to grace the park and surrounding streets. The front of the park on East Parkway and Central Avenue side are landscaped to remain open to give the statue and flag full view.
Take time to walk through our lovely park. It’s a quiet place at the corner of a busy intersection. The next time you drive by, notice the beautiful trees and the statue standing tall guarding our neighborhood.
