Enthusiasts rededicate Woodstock Civil War monument, launch funding drive

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Nick Dentamaro - ndentamaro@nwherald.com Earl Kyle, from left, Mark Greenleaf, Chad Miller and Joyce Kyle stand around the Civil War Memorial statue at the Woodstock Square before the ceremony honoring the 100th anniversary of its unveiling on Tuesday. Chad Miller and the Woodstock Infantry Association are hoping to raise $10,000 over the next six months to restore the statue.

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WOODSTOCK – They raised money selling food at county fairs and stitching names into quilts for 10 cents. After several years of hard work, a post-Civil War auxiliary group finally raised the $3,000 needed to erect a statue in honor of fallen veterans.

One hundred years later, that monument still stands in the Woodstock Square.

On Tuesday afternoon, a group rededicated the statue and pledged to restore and maintain it.

“It’s kind of a focal point in the Square,” said Chad Miller, commander of the Woodstock Infantry Association, which is leading the effort.

Miller said he hoped to raise $10,000 in the next six months to clean the monument, replace the concrete and fencing that surrounds it, and repair a broken anchor on one of the sides of the statue. He hopes that the effort will foster a greater bond between infantry members and the community.

“In the last 20 years, that’s fallen short,” Miller said.

The statue was erected Nov. 3, 1909. After the Civil War, a group called the Grand Army of the Republic formed in the area to improve social services provided to veterans and their widows. Local women formed an auxiliary offshoot to the group, called the Women’s Relief Core.

The Relief Core began discussing the monument in 1897. Over the years, members raised money by selling food and personalizing quilts.

The statue was built by Antonio Zoia in 1909 and unveiled to a crowd of 3,000, McHenry County Historical Museum administrator Nancy Fike said.

“The park was decorated with flags. Businesses and private homes [were] decked in stars and stripes,” Fike said.

That type of enthusiasm over military memorials was common at that time. Fike said the years that followed the Civil War were marked by widespread construction of monuments.

“This was the first war of consequence fought on American soil after the Revolutionary War,” Fike said. “Something as physical as this would attract the attention of the public.”

The monument has found its way into the everyday happenings of town. For example, an image of the statue frequently is used on Woodstock city stationery.

“This monument has become the symbol, in so many ways, of the city of Woodstock,” Woodstock Mayor Brian Sager said. “It’s not just a landmark.”

How to help

To donate to the restoration and maintenance fund for the Woodstock Square monument, visit www.ginnbitters.com and donate using the PayPal widget on the left side of the Web page. Donors also can contact Chad Miller at cmiller@ginnbitters.com.

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