Military statue, one of 19 worldwide, unveiled in Quincy (2024)

QUINCY ‒ A large crowd, including service members and veterans of the U.S. Navy, elected officials and other local dignitaries, gathered Friday morning in a light rain and mist for the dedication of Quincy's Navy Park at Squantum and the Lone Sailor Statue.

The statue, one of 19 worldwide, honors the men and women of the Navy's past, present and future while informing the public about their service, the dedication program said.

The dedication's date, Aug. 9, is significant. On that day in 1942, during the Battle of Savo Island, Japanese forces sunk the USS Quincy, a cruiser built at the Fore River shipyard. The ship's crew of 307 sailors died in the battle

Aug. 9 also marks the anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki in 1945. That anniversary was not mentioned at the dedication.

Retired U.S. Marine Corps General and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford served as the event's "Master of Ceremonies." Dunford was raised in Quincy. A bronze statue of him adorns Generals Park in the city's center.

Dunford recalled how Squantum Point hosted the Victory Plant during World War I, where destroyers were constructed. The same site hosted a Naval Air Station where pilots trained during World War II before deployment.

Dunford remarked on the city’s long historical connection with the Navy, which was established as its own department by President John Adams in 1798.

'A living, outdoor museum.' Koch says park will inspire next generation

Mayor Thomas Koch said the new park fills a need after the 2021 dedication ofGenerals Park, a similar monument commemorating Quincy-born Generals in the city center.

“The Navy guys wanted something special for them too,” Koch said. The mayor acknowledged the late Bob and Ted Naser, local veterans who brought him their idea of establishing a Lone Sailor statue in Quincy years ago.

The park, which enters upon the Marina Bay boardwalk, features the Lone Sailor Statue and commemorative plaques honoring six Quincy admirals and six “notables” who served in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps with distinction.

The admirals include: Vice Adm. Colin J. Kilrain, retired; Rear Adm. Stephen T. Keith, retired;Vice Adm. John K. Ready, d. 2010; Rear Adm. Bartholomew W. Hogan, who died in 1983;Rear Adm. Giles G. Stedman, who died in 1961; andRear Adm. Forrest B. Royal, who died in 1945.

The "notables" include: Francis X. Bellotti, U.S. Navy; Mildred R. Cox, U.S. Marine Corps; Richard A. Stratton, U.S. Navy; Henry W. Bosworth Jr., U.S. Navy;Charles Francis Adams III, U.S. Navy; and John J. Shea, U.S. Navy.

The park will tell the honorees’ stories “for future generations as a living monument and museum,” Koch said.

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and Stephen Lynch honor service members

Following Koch at the podium, Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll said her father was a Navy sailor. She described childhood in a military family, especially the frequent relocations and having always to be "the new kid in school.”

Driscoll said the sacrifice was worth it, as her father set an example of “hard work with discipline and dedication.”

Driscoll also celebrated Gov. Maura Healey’s recent signing of the HERO Act, legislation that invests in healthcare and other benefits and services for veterans.

U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-South Boston, marked the occasion by recalling when he worked nightshifts for General Dynamics at the Fore River shipyard.

The “salty old Navy vets” who ran the shipyard’s welding school impressed upon Lynch and other workers the “serious consequences of any mistake or deviation from their high standards,” he said.

After enumerating some of the important military vessels built at the shipyard, Lynch noted that 81,000 Navy sailors are unaccounted for, and their bodies have been “presumed unrecoverable.”

“They will be forever remembered here, right here in Quincy; the city of Generals, the city of Admirals, the city of Presidents," Lynch said. "How beautiful, how noble, how truly Americans is that?"

Centenarians Frank X. Bellotti and Mildred R. Cox honored at dedication

Two centenarians were honored at the dedication ceremony: Frank X. Bellotti, former Massachusetts lieutenant governor and attorney general, who served during World War II in the Navy’s Amphibious Scouts & Raiders, a precursor to the Navy SEALs; and World War II veteran Mildred R. Cox, one of the first female Marines.

In a poignant moment, Vice Adm. Colin J. Kilrain removed his Navy SEAL pin and attached it to Bellotti’s lapel. Kilrain said Bellotti’s Scouts & Raiders suffered some of the highest casualty rates of all American units fighting in all of World War II.

Cox, who turned 100 this year, gave a spirited speech which highlighted women’s contributions to the armed services.

“For all women warriors, past and present, we were always capable,” she said. “Someone just had to recognized that.”

Cox recounted herlife in Quincy, which she dedicated to Veterans services and raising her children. Cox joked that when neighborhood boys teased her sons with the words, “You’re mother wears combat boots,” they would rejoin, “You’re damn tootin.’”

The ceremony concluded with the ringing of a bell eight times in honor of the 307 crewmembers killed when theU.S.S. Quincy was sunk by Japanese forces in the battle of Savo Island 82 years ago.

The bell belonged to another famous ship built at Fore River shipyard, also named the USS Quincy. This vessel fired on Normandy Beach during the D-Day invasion of 1944. It also transported President Franklin Roosevelt to historically important diplomatic conferences, including the Yalta Conference, in 1945.

Peter Blandino covers Quincy for The Patriot Ledger. Contact him at pblandino@patriotledger.com.

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