Browse Exhibits (3 total)

This memorial recognizes the sacrifice made by the men and women of Providence who fought in World War II. The involvement of the United States in the war was marked by the need to intervene to preserve democracy. As I mentioned, this memorial has the power to shift the dominant perception of World War II. Unfortunately, the The Fox Point Veterans Memorial fails to adequately provide information about Providence veterans' involvement and ultimately serves to acknowledge the sacrifice of male veterans while portraying the contribution of female military personnel as negligible.

Dedicated on November 11, 2007, Veterans Day, the World War II Memorial in Providence is an elaborate structure that has only stood for fifteen years despite commemorating a war over sixty years old by the dedication date. The space is almost overwhelming in its sheer number of details, from Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy quotes to a Mercator projection map to the names of all 2,560 Rhode Island men and women who perished in WWII. Despite this abundance of features visitors to the memorial face, little-to-no information about it exists outside of its physical structure due to its newness. Information such as who designed it, who built it, why it came to stand when it did, and more are, at present, unclear if not entirely unknown. The few sources available, however, demonstrate that this memorial was built by and for those affected by WWII right as the final members of their generation began to pass away. WWII and Korean War veteran Joseph T. Corrente spearheaded its creation; Rhode Island woman Peggy Swann visited the memorial with the Providence Journal to honor the service of her late father. Though complicated by its rather obscure origins and seemingly limited impact on the Providence public, especially considering the WWI Monument that towers over it from mere feet away, the World War II Memorial appears to fulfill its foremost purpose: to provide a space where WWII veterans and their descendants can remember.