There's No Other Monument In The World Like The Andrew Jackson Higgins National Memorial In Nebraska
By Delana Lefevers|Published July 29, 2020
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Delana Lefevers
Author
As a lifelong Nebraskan, Delana loves discovering the many hidden treasures of her state. She has worked as a writer and editor since 2007. Delana's work has been featured on more than a dozen websites and in Nebraska Life Magazine.
Not many people realize that President Eisenhower named a Nebraskan “the man who won the war for us.” Andrew Jackson Higgins designed and built a boat that would change the course of WWII, and there’s a unique memorial in Nebraska honoring him, his work, and the military.
Andrew Higgins designed and built a boat that would eventually be called the Higgins Boat. While other boats required troops to dock in ports - which were heavily guarded and dangerous - the Higgins boat featured a ramp that allowed for disembarkment right on a beach.
The design allowed Allied troops to unload personnel, equipment, and vehicles on open beaches, like Omaha Beach and Normandy Beach. This allowed troops to disperse safely and spread out to attack from a number of angles. More than 23,000 Higgins boats were produced during the war.
When Columbus teacher Jerry Meyer learned that a street had been dedicated to Higgins in New Orleans, he decided that Higgins' hometown needed to build a Higgins memorial. He got his class involved and they came up with a $50,000 goal to build a replica of a Higgins boat.
Meyer's class and a local Korean War vet named Chris Dixon worked hard to raise funds for the project. They sold memorial bricks at $50 each and soon had more than enough money to build the Higgins boat replica and more. The boat was dedicated in 2001.
Subsequent additions were made to the memorial. Three bronze statues of soldiers, each bearing the face of a real-life local soldier, were added in 2002. Fifty-seven bronze stars are embedded in the ground; each one has the name of a beach on which Higgins boats landed. Beneath each star is a small vault containing sand from the corresponding beach.
After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, debris from the World Trade Center was incorporated into a large sculpture representing freedom and the fight against terrorism. A statue of Andrew Jackson Higgins was also added.
Flags from every state and territory and from each branch of the military were erected, and in 2006 the Freedom Wall containing all of the personalized bricks was installed.
The overall result is a totally unique memorial that honors not only Higgins and his war-winning boat, but every military member and others who work tirelessly to fight terrorism. You can see this moving tribute in West Pawnee Park in Columbus, along Highway 30 and Highway 81. Read more about the monument’s history and purpose on the Andrew Jackson Higgins Memorial Foundation’s website.
Have you ever been to this fascinating monument? What did you think of it? Share your thoughts in the comments!
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