elsie item issue 61 - USS Landing Craft Infantry National Association

“ON WATCH” MEMORIAL DEDICATEDAT SOLOMONS, MARYLAND“On Watch”It was a bright, clear late-summer day beside thesparkling waters of the Pautuxet River as a largecrowd gathered to dedicate an eight-foot bronzestatue honoring Amphibious Force sailors.The monument commemorates the AmphibiousTraining Base that was located in Solomons,Maryland, and the men and women who servedtheir country in World War II. This, the nation’sfirst amphibious training facility, was active forfour years, from 1942 to 1945. The base,designed to accommodate about 2,000 men andto prepare them for the planned invasion ofNorth Africa, quickly filled the entire 109 acresite. At its peak in the summer of 1944, the basehad 10,150 men aboard and sent them to all ofthe U. S. Fleets in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.Maryland artist and sculptor Antonio TobiasMendez created the ”On Watch:” statue. It is surroundedby a Veteran’s Plaza, with bricks bearingthe names of WWII veterans who purchased thebricks as part of the campaign for funds for thememorial. A total of 313 bricks were purchased,raising $31,300 to help pay for the statue.18