Pvt. Cornelius J. Conway 77th Infantry Division 305th Company I, “Liberty Brigade” N.Y. N.Y. (Metropolitan Division) was killed at the Muesse Argonne November 3, 1918, and is buried at the Muesse Argonne American Cemetary, “Section E” outside of Verdun, France. This is the largest U.S. cemetary in all of Europe and the largest offensive in American military history.
Citation: Pvt. Cornelius J. Conway had attempted and succeded to save the platoon (Co. I) from machine gun fire from a ridge on the battlefield of Oise-Aisne, France. He charged up the hill with fixed bayonet in hand and took out one machine gun nest with rapid bolt action marksmanship firepower, then waved up the platoon (Co.I.) as he charged at the second machine gun nest taking out this also flinging a baseball pitch with great accuracy two hand gernades. When the platoon took and secured the ridge and the surrender of 85 German prisoners, a sniper fired and a mortar shell hit and mangeled Pvt. 1st Class Cornelius J. Conway who died in route to rear hospital support from the Oise-Aisne battlefield.
Pvt. 1st Class Cornelius J. Conway, of the 77th Division, “Liberty Brigade”, I shall not forget in all my living days and always will remember this soldiers dedication and devotion, beyond the call of duty his sacrifice in the face of severe enemy fire and opposition that saved the men of Company I. I put forthe to my commanding officer, Major General Robert Alexander a citation to and for, Pvt. 1st Class Cornelius J. Conway 77th Division, “Company I” for the nations highest honor, “The Congressional Medal of Honor”.
Captain King 77th Inf. Div. 305th, Co. I.

Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery (WWI) by Jeffrey Aarnio, Assistant Sup.
The Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery
is located about 26 miles northwest
of Verdun in the Meuse Department
of the Lorraine Region. Meuse-
Argonne AC is the largest military
cemetery in Europe with 14, 246 burials
(as many as 28,000 burials at the
end of 1918). It is fitting that this
cemetery is located in the heart of the
Meuse-Argonne Offensive of 26 September
through 11 November 1918,
which remains America’s largest military
offensive to date with over
1,200,000 soldiers who took part in
this continuous battle over a 47-day
period. To put this into perspective,
there are currently around 160,000
U.S. military personnel in the entire
country of Iraq. In the early morning
hours of 26 September on the jumpoff
line, there were nine American
divisions with six divisions in reserve.
An American division in WWI consisted
of 28,000 men as opposed to a
WWII division of 18,000 men. (There
were only five U.S. assault divisions
in Normandy on 6 June 1944) The
land between the towns of Romagnesous-
Montfaucon and Cunel, where
the cemetery is located, was liberated
on 14 October 1918 by the 32nd and
5th Infantry Divisions and was immediately
used as a burial site. By 31
October, the American First Army
had finally breached the last defensive
trench line of the series of Hindenberg
lines, not even five kilometers north
of Romagne and suffered over 27,000
casualties. In the next 11 days, the
First Army pushed north another 37
km to reach the edge of Sedan before
the Armistice took effect on 11 November.
While it is impossible to truly
put into perspective the number of
Americans and the difficulty of fighting
in this colossal offensive, the map
on the next page reveals how many
Medals of Honor were awarded over
this month and a half period. In all, a
total of 119 Medals of Honor were
awarded for the First World War.
“Double” Medals of Honor awarded
to marines by the Navy and Army for
the same action – only count as one
award. Out of the 119 total Medals of
Honor for World War One, 53 of
which were awarded for actions in the
Meuse-Argonne Offensive (45%). If
one adds the eight Medals of Honor
earned in the Champagne Offensive in
the area between the Argonne Forest
and Blanc Mont (Sommepy – where
the U.S. Federal Monument is located),
then this brings the total to 61
Medals of Honor (51%). This latter
tally is logical in that this area was
known as the Meuse-Argonne
(Champagne) Offensive and is in the
area of responsibility of the Meuse-
Argonne AC. There may very well
not be another battlefield where so
many Medals of Honor were awarded
(post Civil War) than the horrendous
battle that took place between the east
bank of the Meuse river and the Argonne
forest in the fall of 1918.
Those of you who have visited the
cemetery or know the history may
think of the Lost Battalion (elements
of the 77th ID who were isolated in
their advance when the flank units did
not keep pace, eventually becoming
surrounded by Germans for five
days), or Sergeant York’s heroic exploits
(killing 15 enemy and taking
132 prisoners, portrayed later in a
classic film with Gary Cooper), or the
numerous officers who would later go
on to greater fame in WWII such as
Captain Harry Truman, Colonel
George Marshall, Jr., Colonel Bill
Donavan, Colonel Douglas MacArthur,
and Lt. Col. George Patton, Jr.
(all of whom fought in the Meuse-
Argonne campaign). Of the nine
Medal of Honor recipients buried at
MAAC, Luke Air Force Base is
named after Lt. Frank Luke and the
National Guard training facility Camp
Roberts in Central California is
named after Corporal Harold Roberts.
Corporal Freddie Stowers received the
Medal of Honor in April 1991 after a
Presidential committee was ordered to
re-examine whether discrimination
played a role in military awards. In
fact, Corporal Stowers was the only
black soldier to have been nominated
for the Medal of Honor during the
war. Also buried in the cemetery is
the only Jewish soldier to receive the
Medal of Honor during the war; the
recipient was Sergeant William Sawelson.
Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery
Romagne-sous-Montfaucon, France
lated grave. Cpt. Coolidge, nephew of
President Calvin Coolidge, and friend
and former classmate at Groton and Harvard
of Quentin Roosevelt, was killed on
27 October 1918 about 10 km west of
the cemetery. His isolated grave is maintained
by the people of Chièvres.
Sergeant Victor Chapman, Plot D, Row
1, Grave 33, is the only member of the
Lafayette Escadrille to be interred in an
American overseas military cemetery as
a member of this French unit, also
known as the Lafayette Flying Corps.*
This is a very unique and mysterious
burial which still leaves us perplexed
about how the decision was made to
bury Sgt. Chapman in the cemetery. It is
true that Victor Chapman was representative
of the blue-blood idealists – he was
the great-great-great grandson of John
Jay, first U.S. Chief Justice – who volunteered
to fight with the French and British
before the official entry into war by
the U.S. In fact, Chapman volunteered
for the French by first entering the Third
Marching Regiment of the First Foreign
Regiment of the Foreign Legion before
transferring to the Escadrille Américaine
as one of its founding members (the
name was changed soon after to Escadrille
Lafayette following German protests
of American neutrality in 1916).
Chapman was killed flying a non-combat
mission from his base at Behonne, near
Bar-le-Duc, to deliver fresh oranges to
another American pilot at the evacuation
hospital at Vadelaincourt, near Verdun.
Instead of following orders not to fly on
a combat patrol, Chapman followed several
Lafayette pilots to the east bank of
the Meuse and was shot down near
Douaumont, northeast of Verdun on 23
June 1916. (see “The Lafayette Flying
Corps: The American Volunteers in the
French Air Service in World War One”,
by Dennis Gordon)
poses. The only recorded combat death
of a balloonist took place when “Lt.
Cleo J. Ross (8th Balloon Company) . .
. and Lt. Herbert Hudnut were aloft and
attacked by a Fokker D. VII, the balloon
burst into flames. Lt. Ross made
sure that his observer got over the side
safely. He went over the side and after
his parachute deployed, burning fragments
of the balloon fell on the parachute.
Lt. Ross [fell] to his death from
several thousand feet.” The Army Balloon
School at Ross Field, Arcadia,
California was so named after the death
of Lt. Ross, who is buried at MAAC.
(see http://www.militarymuseum.org/
BalloonSch.html)
When one mentions the Code Talkers,
most people immediately think of the
Navajo marines who were instrumental
in the Pacific theater during World War
II. But the original Code Talkers were
fourteen Choctaw soldiers of the 36th
ID who first used their language to defeat
German code breakers in the
Meuse-Argonne (Champagne) Offensive
of October 1918. This highly successful
use of Native American languages
was repeated and expanded in
the Second World War to include Comanche
and, as already mentioned,
Navajo, to compliment the Choctaw
soldiers (see http://www.turtletrack.org/
I s s u e s 0 0 / C o 0 6 0 3 2 0 0 0 /
CO_06032000_Codetalk.htm).
In early October, we had the pleasure of
welcoming to MAAC an American
grandfather, father and son—direct
descendents of a WWI aerial photographer
who took many photos of the
Meuse area around MAAC—after all
three had read, “Echoes of Eagles: A
Son’s Search for his Father and the
Legacy of America’s First Fighter Pilots”,
by Charles Woolley & Bill Crawford.
They made the decision to make
the trip to France and visit the WWI
battlefields after being inspired by the
book and the experience of the greatgrandfather
during the war. One of their
desires was to get out to Chièvres and
see Captain Hamilton Coolidge’s iso-
Looking now at the lesser known history
behind the Meuse-Argonne AC, it is
fitting to examine the soldier that was
selected among the 1,237 unknowns
from the Great War to represent the national
unknown soldier. This decision
followed the British and French ceremonial
burials of an unknown at Buckingham
Palace and the Arc de Triomphe
respectively. On 22 October 1921, one
unknown from four American military
cemeteries (Aisne-Marne, Meuse-
Argonne, Somme and St. Mihiel cemeteries)
was selected from among the unknowns
“which represented the remains
of soldiers of which there was absolutely
not the slightest indication as to name,
rank, organization or date of
death.”(from Quartermaster report that
can be read at: h t t p : / /
w w w . q m f o u n d . c o m /
soldier_unknown.htm) The four unknowns
were disinterred and brought to
the town hall in Châlons-sur-Marne
(today Châlons-en-Champagne) where
they were given full military honors.
One of the pall bearers, Sergeant
Younger – a decorated infantryman -
was asked to place a white rose on one
of the caskets in the town hall. This selected
unknown was then shipped to the
United States aboard the American naval
vessel, the Olympia. The Tomb of the
Unknown Soldier with the selected unknown
remains (he was officially
awarded the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished
Service Cross and the highest
military awards by several allied nations)
was officially inaugurated on 11 November
1921, three years after the end of the
war. The three remaining unknowns
were brought to the Meuse-Argonne AC
and interred in Plot G, Row 1, Grave
numbers 1, 2, and 3 (also from Quartermaster
report).
According to the ABMC book,
“American Armies and Battlefields in
Europe”, 1937 Edition, the American Air
Service of the American Expeditionary
Forces had a total strength of 78,495
men by November 1918, of which a total
of 6,811 were balloonists. There were 23
balloon companies that actually served at
the front, mostly for observation pur-
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier,
Arlington National Cemetery
Choctaw soldiers of the 36th ID
Cpt. Hamilton Coolidge’s Headstone
Emblem of

*History of the 36th (Texas “T”) Infantry Division World War II*

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/Q7s_f0gZUkA?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US”></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/Q7s_f0gZUkA?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

The 36th Infantry Division was activated prior to World War II on 25 November 1940. It deployed overseas on 2 April 1943, commanded by Fred Walker. The 36th Infantry Division landed in North Africa, 13 April 1943, and trained at Arzew and Rabat. It first saw action, 9 September 1943, when it landed by sea at Paestum on the Gulf of Salerno against intense German opposition. The Germans launched counterattacks on September 12-14, but the 36th repulsed them with the aid of air support and naval gunfire, and advanced slowly, securing the area from Agropoli to Altavilla.

After a brief rest the 36th returned to combat, 15 November. It captured Mount Maggiore, Mount Lungo, and the village of San Pietro despite strong enemy positions and severe winter weather. This grueling campaign was marked by futile attempts to establish a secure bridgehead across the Rapido River, 1 January to 8 February 1944. After assisting the 34th Division in the attack on Cassino and fighting defensively along the Rapido River, the severely depleted 36th withdrew, 12 March 1944, for rest and rehabilitation. On 25 May, the Division was sent by sea to the Anzio bridgehead to take part in Operation Diadem. It drove north to capture Velletri, 1 June, and entered Rome on the 5th. Pushing up from Rome, the 36th encountered sharp resistance at Magliano, but reached Piombino, 26 June, before moving back to Paestum for rest and rehabilitation.

On 15 August, as part of the American 6th Army Group, the division made another amphibious assault landing, against light opposition in the Saint-Raphaël area of Southern France as part of Operation Dragoon. A rapid advance opened the Rhone River Valley. Montelimar fell, 28 August, and large German units were trapped. The 36th advanced to the Moselle River at Remiremont and the foothills of the Vosges. In a grinding offensive, the Division crossed the Meurthe River, breached the Ste. Marie Pass and burst into the Alsatian Plains. The enemy counterattacked, 13 December, but the 36th held the perimeter of the Colmar Pocket.

The German Army counterattacks out of the Colmar Pocket were so fierce, that at times, the field artillery was forced to fire over open sights, at point blank range to stop them. On the 20th the Division resumed the attack, advancing northward along the Rhine River to Mannheim< meeting heavy resistance at Haguenau, Oberhofen, and Wissembourg. In this action Company “G” 143rd Infantry Regiment gained a Presidential Unit Citation (US).

The Division was taken out of the line for the first time since it had landed in the south of France. It returned to the line early March 1945. The 36th moved to the Danube, 22 April 1945, and attacked the “National Redoubt” at Künzelsau on the 30th. The 36th has been recognized by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum as a liberating unit for their work securing the sub-camps of the Dachau concentration camp system.

After 400 days of combat, the 36th Infantry Division returned to the United States in December 1945. It was deactivated on 15 December 1945.

24TH (VICTORY) INFANTRY DIVISION Korean War

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/hh0hyALDW7Y?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US”></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/hh0hyALDW7Y?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

Prior to the start of the Korean War, the 24th Infantry Division had occupation duty on Japan’s southernmost main island of Kyushu. When President Harry S. Truman ordered U.S. ground forces to support the Republic of Korea, the 24th Infantry Division was the closest so was tasked with providing the first ground forces. This took the form a scratch unit designated “Task Force Smith” which deployed from Itazuke Air Base on 2 July 1950. At the time, Task Force Smith consisted of the following units from the 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment: 2 under-strength rifle companies “A” & “B,” one-half of Headquarters Company, one-half of the battalion’s communications platoon, a composite 75-mm Recoilless Rifle platoon with four guns, and four 4.2″ mortars, for a total of 440 men but only 406 actually arrived in Korea. Task Force Smith was transported to Osan, South Korea where it dug in to wait the North Koreans, now supported by a battery of 105mm howitzers.

They did not have long to wait. At approximately 0730, 5 July 1950, North Korean tanks were observed advancing south. The, at 0816, Task Force Smith supporting artillery fired its first rounds. The lightly armed Task Force Smith was no match for Soviet-built T-34 tanks, backed by a North Korean division so by early afternoon, survivors from the task force were running for their lives. In the next three weeks the 24th Infantry Division suffered defeat after defeat as it fought gallantly while slowly retreating southward, trading lives and ground for time so U.S. forces could build up in the country.

The 24th Infantry Division was replaced in Korea by the 40th Infantry Division, 23 January 1952, and redeployed to Japan, returning to Korea a second time on 16 July 1953, one week before the ceasefire was signed.

The 24th Infantry Division consisted of:

Division Headquarters and Headquarters Company
19th Infantry Regiment
21st Infantry Regiment
34th Infantry Regiment
Division Artillery
11th Field Artillery Battalion (155mm)
13th Field Artillery Battalion (105mm)
52nd Field Artillery Battalion (105mm)
63rd Field Artillery Battalion (105mm)
26th Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion
Division Troops
Company A, 78th Tank Battalion (Heavy) replaced by the
6th Tank Battalion (Medium) on 8 August 1950
3rd Engineer Battalion (Combat)
24th Reconnaissance Company
Division Special Troops
24th Medical Battalion
24th Signal Company
724th Ordnance Maintenance Battalion
24th Quartermaster Company
24th Military Police Company
24th Replacement Company
Attached units
5th Infantry Regiment (31 September 1950 – January 1952)
555th (Triple Nickel) Field Artillery Battalion
8072nd Tank Battalion (Provisional)
Eighth Army Ranger Company (10 October 1950 – 28 March 1951)
8th Ranger Infantry Company (Airborne) (31 April 1951 – 1 August 1951)
British 27th Commonwealth Brigade

               *The Cold War Era and The Vietnam War, 1952 to 1965*

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/A3Xze29UPrg?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US”></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/A3Xze29UPrg?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/f0-zaiVuR5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US”></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/f0-zaiVuR5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

                             * Vietnam War Era, 1963 to 1965*

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/f0-zaiVuR5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US”></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/f0-zaiVuR5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/f0-zaiVuR5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US”></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/f0-zaiVuR5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

Patrolman Charles V. McCullough N.Y.P.D. (career 1919-1942)

Charles V. McCullough N.Y.P.D. received the Martin J. Sheridan Medal of Valor (11-02-1923) on the steps of Tammany Hall Manhatten, New York from the Mayor John F. Hylan of New York city. Patrolman McCullough singled handedly captured seven robbers at gunpoint robbing the local taylor shop in Manhatten, New York.
Cash donations for the replacement of missing Tombstone from “Holy Cross Cemetary” St. Michaels section N.Y. N.Y. for Patrolman Charles V. McCullough N.Y.P.D tax deductable mail to:: Robert E. McCullough B.A., Arch. P.O. Box 332 La Jolla Cove-La Jolla, Ca.92038]

Recipients of the New York City Police Department’s Martin J. Sheridan Medal for ValorTo make a tax-deductible donation to mount a plaque at Celtic Park click here. On July 5, 1921, at a meeting of the Honor Committee of the New York City Police Department, the Martin J. Sheridan Medal for Valor was established in honor of Detective Martin J. Sheridan – the Irish-American Athletic Club’s star Olympic champion who died in 1918 on the eve of his 37th birthday. The minutes of that meeting state that the medal was to be awarded annually “to a member of the Police Force of the City of New York who may distinguish himself by an act performed intelligently in the line of duty at imminent person hazard of life and with knowledge of risk assumed.”
The medal was first presented in 1922 and regularly awarded until discontinued in 1975. It was produced by the famous New York City silver and goldsmiths, Dieges & Clust, the same firm that creqated the NYPD badges, and crafted the 1904 Olympic medals. The medal was initially paid for through a trust fund established by the Martin J. Sheridan Memorial Committee, with New York State Supreme Court Justice Daniel F. Cohalan serving as chairman.
Below is a complete list of all of the recipients of this distinguished medal. This information was graciously provided by the NYPD Office of the Chief of Personnel and the New York City Police Museum.

Note: The dates listed below are when the acts of valor were performed, not the dates the medals were awarded.

If you have any information regarding the whereabouts of any of the medals, or are related to any of the recipients, please email: wingedfist@gmail.com.
Patrolman Dennis J. Rodgers 40th Precinct 2/16/1921
Patrolman John F. Smith 28th Precinct 1922
Patrolman Charles V. McCullough 13th Precinct 11/02/1923
Patrolman Bernard F. Reilly 15th Precinct 3/02/1924
Patrolman Michael A. Ward Detective Division 10/10/1925
Detective William J. Wallace Detective Division 5/23/1926
Patrolman James J. Reedy 45th Precinct 7/02/1927
Patrolman Daniel J. Sullivan 19th Precinct 11/23/1928
Patrolman Robert E. Troy 18th Precinct 11/06/1929
Detective John G. Schellhorn 13th Division 4/20/1930
Patrolman William J. Ryan 27th Precinct 1/10/1931
Patrolman Joseph Papp 114th Precinct 12/01/1932
Patrolman Thomas D. Comiskey 22nd Precinct 5/12/1933
Detective Francis O’Neill 13th Division 7/19/1934
Patrolman Patrick J. McNulty 28th Precinct 1/30/1935
Patrolman James O’Shaughnessey 32nd Precinct 12/15/1936
Patrolman Edward F. Larkin 14th Precinct 5/06/1937
Sergeant William J. Sullivan 24th Precinct 3/04/1938
Patrolman Francis X. Nugent 120th Precinct 9/16/1939
Patrolman Raymond H. Gallagher 10th Precinct 3/24/1940
Sergeant Joseph W. Heaney 3rd Precinct 3/27/1941
Patrolman John J. Kelly 23rd Precinct 2/20/1943
Sergeant James J. McGann 17th Division 3/07/1943
Patrolman James J. Martin 24th Precinct 9/23/1944
Patrolman Thomas P. Rooney 18th Precinct 10/23/1945
Patrolman Francis J. Brady 19th Precinct 4/19/1946
Patrolman George A. Bailey 20th Detective Division 4/16/1947
Detective James J. Fox Detective Division 11/02/1948
Patrolman John J. Reilly 84th Precinct 3/10/1949
Detective Elmer E. McKinney Detective Division 6/06/1950
Detective Jeremiah O’Connor Detective Division 7/21/1951
Detective Walter C. Bentley Detective Division 12/18/1953
Sergeant Terrence F. Harvey 8th Precinct 1/17/1954
Detective Dennis R. McCann Detective Division 2/18/1955
Sergeant Thomas D. Hoarty 28th Precinct 8/01/1956
Patrolman Algard Kivita 14th Precinct 7/25/1961
Patrolman Charles J. Burke 19th Precinct 6/11/1962
Patrolman Edward J. Flanagan Tactical Patrol Force 2/10/1967
Patrolman Angelo Catalano 77th Precinct 1/29/1968
Detective Delmer Watson 24th Detective Squad 5/13/1969
Detective Albert W. Gleason Bomb Section 2/09/1970
Detective Richard Auletta 66th Detective Squad 12/14/1970
Detective Ralph M. White 7th Detective Division 4/02/1969
Detective Gene A. Roberts 8th Detective Division 4/02/1969
Patrolman Brian Tuohy Service Squad 8 1/19/1973
Detective Thomas Sommerville 109th Precinct 9/28/1973
Rank & NamePrecinct / DivisionDateCourtesy of Celtic Park Productions and the Sheri
Martin Sheridan – Olympic Medalist (1881-1918)

One of the greatest contributions to the world of sport at the start of the century was the amazing string of records set by a young Bohola man named Martin J. Sheridan.

The Sheridan homestead is the only existing one in the townland of Bohola today, situated to the left on the Swinford/Castlebar road, just beyond the Treenduff junction.

Martin Sheridan was without a doubt one of Bohola`s most renowned and illustrious sons, several times Olympic Champion in the early 1900`s, but all of the family were successful in various fields.

Shortly after reaching America, Richard and Martin Jr. took their civil service examinations and joined the police force in New York. Andrew started training in the hotel and catering business. They were all interested in sports and took advantage of the elaborate Irish/American clubs available to them at the time.

The brothers took part in various competitions and always created a sensation on the field, usually walking away with the first three places. It became obvious as time went on that Martin was destined to become a number one all-round athlete. Spectators marvelled at his unique strength, speed, and accuracy.

Martin continued to do well in the police force and reached the rank of First Grade Detective in the New York Police Department. But all attention was on his sporting achievements.

This young Bohola man, who stood 6 feet 1 inch, and weighed 191 pounds, had the world at his feet.

One of the few track and field athletes of the past generation who was as good as unbeatable within a fourteen year span, he won hundreds of athletic contests, including five Olympic, twelve National and more than thirty Canadian, Metropolitan and Regional Championships.

The early victories

Martin Sheridan won his first event, a discus throw, in 1901, with a handicap, at the Pastime A.C. in New York in 1902, in his third competition he created a new world record in this event.

In 1904, Martin took the American title with 119′ 1.5” and also took the shotput at 40’9.5”. On the strength of these performances, he was selected to represent America in both events at the St. Louis games.

The St Louis Olympics (1904)

Born on March 28, 1881, Martin Sheridan was just 23 when he made his debut into Olympic competition at St Louis in 1904, and his first Olympic victory was in the discus.

Instead of the anticipated easy victory, he found himself in third place before the final three rounds and faced with a far more difficult battle than he had expected.

The fighter in him refused to give up, however, and he struck back with 125′ in his fourth throw, moving into second place. His fifth throw was even better. He sent the discus spinning out to 128’10. 5”. He did not improve in his last throw but neither did his nearest competitor Ralph Rose, and so the competition ended in the first and only tie in the history of Olympic discus throwing.

Three weeks after his win in St Louis, Martin Sheridan took back the sole ownership of the world record with a throw of 133’6. 5”, and this was still the worlds best mark when he left, with the first official American Olympic team, for the Intercalated Olympic Games at Athens in 1906.

One writer at the time described him:”He was the most handsome of the athletes and although he was a giant in size he could run the hundred yards in a little more that ten seconds”.

One of New York’s ‘finest’

Martin attained first place on an eligible list for the NYPD and was appointed a member of the ‘finest’ in 1906. He helped organise the Police Carnival and Games for the benefit of the welfare fund of the Department which, for many years, was an outstanding athletic event in New York.

The Athens Olympics (1906)

At Athens, Martin had no trouble in winning the discus freestyle. He went over 130′ with his first throw, and eventually won with a fraction over 136′.

All during this time, he was very much aware of the troubles in his native country and it grieved him to see the Irish people suffering so much.

He created quite a stir when he rebelled slightly against protocol in Athens. It was customary for athletes partaking in the games to dip the flag of his country while passing the king’s stand, but Martin held his aloft in protest at what was happening in his native land.

When questioned at his arrogance, he stated that Ireland had bowed too often, but not anymore. The Greek king was so impressed with the Irishman that he had a statute erected in his honour in Athens, and he also presented him with a gold goblet and vaulting pole.

His second gold medal at Athens came in the shotput. He also won Olympic silver medals in the standing long jump, the standing high jump and stone-throwing, and then a leg injury prevented him from taking an almost certain gold medal in the pentathlon. On his return to New York, sportswriters acclaimed him as the greatest track and field athlete of all time.

Other achievements

In addition to the ten events of the all-round championship, which he won three times with a new world record on each occasion, Martin Sheridan also won championships in the discus throw (free and Greek style), the 56lb. weight for height, the pole vault for distance, the three standing-broad jumps, the standing high jump, and the javelin throw. In his victories, he created sixteen world records.

In 1907, this great Bohola man raised the world discus record to 136’10”. The climax of his athletic career came in 1908 in the Old Madison Square Garden, where he won five firsts, two seconds, and a third place in the national indoor championships, thereby scoring 32 points and creating a new record in two events, a feat unparalleled in the history of track and field competition.

In June 1908, at the American trials for the Olympic Games, he brought a discus throw of 140′ in sight with a further world record of 139’6. 5”. Because of his tremendous all-round display in these trials, he was nominated to represent America in every field event at the 1908 Games in London.

The London Olympics (1908)

The great Bohola athlete took three Olympic medals at the games in Shepherd’s Bush Stadium – two gold and one bronze. A number of people travelled to London from Bohola for the games to see their champion compete for America.

A return to his roots

Martin visited Ireland in 1908 after the London Olympics. He gave exhibitions at Dundalk, Dungarvan, Dublin, and Ballina. He competed at the Ballina athletic sports, breaking the British record for the pole jump, and he also broke other such records at Jones`Road, Dungarvan, and Dundalk.

Following the exhibition, a banquet was held in the Imperial Hotel, where Martin presented a bamboo vaulting pole to his fellow Bohola man and cousin, P.J. Clarke.

This was the very pole with which he had won the world vaulting championships in 1907 at Milan, and the 1908 London Olympics, and it is still a prizes possession today of P.J.`s grandson Micksey. During his visit to Bohola, the priest and people of the community got together and presented him with a scroll, welcoming him back to Bohola.

Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720–1778)

The Skeletons: From the Grotteschi, ca. 1748, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Etching with engraving, drypoint, and burnishing, second state (37.45.3.38)

Parte di ampio magnifico Porto all’uso degli antichi Romani (Part of a spacious magnificent harbor in the manner of the ancient Romans), ca. 1749–50, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Etching, first state before caption plate (37.45.3.41)

Piazza del Popolo, ca. 1750, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Etching (37.45.3.49)

The Round Tower: Plate 3 of Carceri, ca. 1749–60, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Italian, Etching, engraving, sulphur tint or open bite, burnishing (37.45.3(27))

View of the Palazzo Mancini, Rome, 1752, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Etching (41.71.1.16.29)

Veduta del Mausoleo d’Elio Adraiano, ora chiamato Castello S. Angelo (View of the Mausoleum of Hadrian, now called the Castel S. Angelo): From Vedute di Roma (Views of Rome), ca. 1756, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Etching, undescribed first state with address of Bouchard (55.567.6)

An Analysis of the Structure of the Mausoleum of Cecilia Metella: From Antichità Romane, 1756, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Etching, plate 49 of Antichità Romane, vol. 3, first edition (41.71.1.3.49)

Various Roman Ionic capitals compared with Greek examples, from Julien-David Le Roy’s Les ruines des plus beaux monuments de la Grèce (1758): Plate 20 of Della magnificenza ed architettura de’ romani, 1761, Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian), Engraving (41.71.1.7.20)

Roll over thumbnail(s) for preview(s) of related Museum work(s) of art, organized in chronological order.

“I need to produce great ideas, and I believe that if I were commissioned to design a new universe, I would be mad enough to undertake it.”

This statement by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, reported by one of his early biographers, in many ways sums up the man whose dreams of antiquity so often surpassed reality, from his earliest etchings of architectural fantasies to the fanciful restorations of ancient remains that he produced at the end of his career.

Related

Timelines (2)

• • Rome and Southern Italy, 1600–1800 A.D.
• • Venice and Northern Italy, 1600–1800 A.D.

Thematic Essays (18)

• • Architecture in Ancient Greece
• • Architecture in Renaissance Italy
• • Classical Antiquity in the Middle Ages
• • Etruscan Art
• • The French Academy in Rome
• • Giambattista Tiepolo (1696–1770)
• • Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720–1778)
• • The Grand Tour
• • Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851)
• • List of Rulers: Europe
• • Neoclassicism
• • The Printed Image in the West: Drypoint
• • The Printed Image in the West: Etching
• • The Printed Image in the West: History and Techniques
• • The Rediscovery of Classical Antiquity
• • Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606–1669): Prints
• • Theater and Amphitheater in the Roman World
• • Venice in the Eighteenth Century

Maps (2)

• • Europe Map, 1600–1800 A.D.
• • World Map, 1600–1800 A.D.

Index Terms (19)

Art Movement/Style

• • Baroque and Rococo

Artist

• • Piranesi, Giovanni Battista (Italian, 1720–1778)

Geography/Place

• • Europe, Italian Peninsula
• • Europe, Italian Peninsula, Northern Italy (and Venice)
• • Europe, Italian Peninsula, Southern Italy (and Rome)
• • Europe, Seventeenth– and Eighteenth–Century Art

Material and Technique

• • Drawing, Chalk
• • Drawing, Charcoal
• • Preparatory Study
• • Preparatory Study, Drawing
• • Preparatory Study, Drawing, Europe
• • Print, Engraving
• • Print, Etching

Object

• • Architectural Elements, Secular
• • Architectural Elements, Secular, Europe

Subject Matter/Theme

• • Print, Engraving, Architectural
• • Print, Engraving, Other
• • Print, Etching, Architectural
• • Print, Etching, Other

One of the greatest printmakers of the eighteenth century, Piranesi always considered himself an architect. The son of a stonemason and master builder, he received practical training in structural and hydraulic engineering from a maternal uncle who was employed by the Venetian waterworks, while his brother, a Carthusian monk, fired the aspiring architect with enthusiasm for the history and achievements of the ancient Romans. Piranesi also received a thorough background in perspective construction and stage design. Although he had limited success in attracting architectural commissions, this diverse training served him well in the profession that would establish his fame.

Whether or not Piranesi studied printmaking in Venice, it is certain that soon after his arrival in Rome in 1740, he apprenticed himself briefly to Giuseppe Vasi, the foremost producer of the etched views of Rome that supplied pilgrims, scholars, artists, and tourists with a lasting souvenir of their visit. Quickly mastering the medium of etching, Piranesi found in it an outlet for all his interests, from designing fantastic complexes of buildings that could exist only in dreams (37.45.3.41), to reconstructing in painstaking detail the aqueduct system of the ancient Romans. The knowledge of ancient building methods demonstrated by Piranesi’s archaeological prints allowed him to make a name for himself as an antiquarian—his Antichità Romane of 1756 (41.71.1.3.49; 41.71.1.3.53) won him election to the Society of Antiquarians of London. Etching also provided Piranesi with a livelihood, allowing him to turn one of his favorite activities, drawing the ancient and modern buildings of Rome, into a lucrative source of income. By 1747, Piranesi had begun the work for which he is best known, the Vedute di Roma (Views of Rome), and he continued to produce plates for the series until the year of his death in 1778. Piranesi’s popular Vedute (37.45.3.49; 41.71.1.16.29; 64.521.2; 55.567.6; 59.570.426), which eclipsed earlier views of Roman landmarks through their dynamic compositions, bold lighting effects, and dramatic presentation, shaped European conceptions to such an extent that Goethe, who had come to know Rome through Piranesi’s prints, was somewhat disappointed on his first encounter with the real thing. Piranesi’s willingness to embrace the profession of printmaking was conditioned by his ties to Venice, the only city in eighteenth-century Italy where the greatest artists turned their hands to etching. Piranesi returned to his native city twice in the mid-1740s, the very years in which Canaletto was producing his luminous etched views of Venice (1973.634) and Tiepolo was at work on his novel series of etchings, the Scherzi and the Capricci—long recognized as an inspiration for the sketchy improvisation of Piranesi’s Grotteschi (37.45.3.38). The series of labyrinthine prison interiors, the Carceri (37.45.3(27)), was also created soon after Piranesi’s encounter with the lively printmaking scene in Venice. In these prints, Piranesi explored the possibilities of perspective and spatial illusion while pushing the medium of etching to its limits.

Given his admiration for Rome and his contentious nature, Piranesi could hardly refrain from entering into the debate at mid-century over the relative merits of Greek and Roman art. Here, too, etching served him well as a means of supporting his arguments. His Delle magnificenza ed architettura de’Romani of 1761 advanced the view, shared by other scholars, that the Romans had learned not from the Greeks—as British and French scholars had begun to argue—but from the earlier inhabitants of Italy, the Etruscans. Piranesi used his knowledge of ancient engineering accomplishments to defend the creative genius of the Romans, but devoted even more space to a celebration of the richness and variety of Roman ornament (41.71.1.7.20).

While Piranesi championed the art of Rome, he was not indifferent to the charms of Greek art, nor to that of the Egyptians, as is evident from his fanciful design for an Egyptian fireplace (1973.509.8) or his decorative scheme for the walls of the Caffé Inglese (41.71.1.20.46), the British cafe located in the Piazza di Spagna. In his preface to the Diverse maniere d’adornare i cammini of 1769, which includes both of these etched plates along with designs in the Etruscan, Greek, Roman, and even Rococo styles, Piranesi argued for the complete freedom of the architect or designer to draw on models from every time and place as an inspiration for his own inventions. Piranesi’s etchings of his eclectic mantelpiece and furniture designs circulated throughout Europe, influencing decorative trends, and even functioned as a sales catalogue to advertise the objects he fashioned from ancient remains. Some of the fireplace designs included in the Diverse maniere were actually executed under Piranesi’s direction, utilizing antique fragments discovered in recent excavations. The restoration of such fragmentary remains, a process that ranged from simply providing an ancient Roman vase with a suitable antique base to such elaborate assemblages as the Newdigate candelabrum (41.71.1.13.14), became a new business for Piranesi.

Piranesi’s unique opportunity to exercise his creative genius on a monumental scale occurred during the reign of the Venetian pope Clement XIII (1758–69), when the papal nephew, Cardinal Rezzonico, assigned him two major architectural projects. Although Piranesi’s elaborate designs for the apse of the Lateran Basilica were never realized, he was able to apply his original conception of ornament to the renovation of the church of the Knights of Malta on the Aventine, Santa Maria del Priorato, which included an impressive ceremonial piazza enclosed by obelisks and trophies.

It seems that the artist’s tireless devotion to his work and his identification with the grandeur of Rome never flagged, for on the day of his death, Piranesi reportedly refused to rest: saying that repose was unworthy of a citizen of Rome, he spent his last hours busy among his drawings and copperplates.

Wendy Thompson Department of Drawings and Prints, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Citation for this page

Thompson, Wendy. “Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720–1778)”. In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/pira/hd_pira.htm (October 2003)

Suggested Further Reading(s) Find these publications in a library

Robison, Andrew. Piranesi: Early Architectural Fantasies: A Catalogue Raisonné of the Etchings. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986.
Wilton-Ely, John. The Mind and Art of Giovanni Battista Piranesi. London: Thames & Hudson, 1978.

Suggested Web Link(s)

Santa Maria del Priorato

More Information on www.metmuseum.org
Special Exhibitions (including upcoming, current, and past exhibitions)

Poets, Lovers, and Heroes in Italian Mythological Prints

Learn more on www.metmuseum.org

Drawings and Prints: Features & Exhibitions; Permanent Collection; Online Resources (links); Books in the Met Store (European); Books in the Met Store (American)

↑ Back to Top

<!––>Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History What is the Timeline? |  <!–Multimedia | –> Selected Readings |  <!–Useful Links | –> Credits |  Image Copyrights and Credits |  Tell Us How You Use the Timeline |  Send an E-Card |  Site Survey

<!––>The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Home | Works of Art | Curatorial Departments | Collection Database | Features | Timeline of Art History | Explore & Learn | The Met Store | Membership | Ways to Give | Plan Your Visit | Calendar | The Cloisters | Concerts & Lectures | Educational Resources | Events & Programs | FAQs | Special Exhibitions | My Met Museum | Press Room | Met Podcast | MetShare | Site Index | Now at the Met | MuseumKids Photograph Credits Copyright © 2000–2008 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. All rights reserved.  Terms and Conditions | Privacy Policy.