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Jolicoeur Square and the Woonsocket Cross: Not So Special After All
Recently, our forum was visited by Steve Ahlquist, uncle of Jessica Ahlquist, in his effort to correct a great deal of misinformation out there regarding the history of the Woonsocket Cross. His latest blog post, found here, goes deeper into the history of all of the locations dedicated to WW1 vets in Woonsocket, including Jolicoeur Square, where the cross is located.
I think the last three paragraphs of the post are my favorite:
The fact is that none of the places I visited are considered in any way to be special areas for fallen WWI soldiers. This is not my opinion, it's the opinion of the generations of people who have ignored, renamed or paved over these squares. If we want to vest these locations with specialness once more, then we need to not single out the one location that happens to have an inappropriate cross on top, but include all the locations in some sort of larger effort. Hopefully this essay can be sen as the beginning of such an effort.
As far as Jolicoeur Square goes, the land (or some other piece of land) could and should be re-dedicated to William Jolicoeur, perhaps with a small plaque or sign. A similar plaque or sign could be installed throughout the city at the other nine sites as well, especially those sites that have been completely lost or forgotten in time. I don't expect that anyone in Woonsocket is prepared to start calling Market Square "Young Square" in contradiction to years of familiarity, but a small sign remembering the valor of Andrew F. Young might be in order.
What this research shows is that a compromise is possible between those who want the cross to stay on the Gagne monument, and those who want it removed. The cross can be moved to private property with no insult to the Gagne or Jolicoeur families. The Jolicouer Square can be re-dedicated, along with nine other forgotten heroes, and church and state can continue to be protected from each other.
As far as Jolicoeur Square goes, the land (or some other piece of land) could and should be re-dedicated to William Jolicoeur, perhaps with a small plaque or sign. A similar plaque or sign could be installed throughout the city at the other nine sites as well, especially those sites that have been completely lost or forgotten in time. I don't expect that anyone in Woonsocket is prepared to start calling Market Square "Young Square" in contradiction to years of familiarity, but a small sign remembering the valor of Andrew F. Young might be in order.
What this research shows is that a compromise is possible between those who want the cross to stay on the Gagne monument, and those who want it removed. The cross can be moved to private property with no insult to the Gagne or Jolicoeur families. The Jolicouer Square can be re-dedicated, along with nine other forgotten heroes, and church and state can continue to be protected from each other.
I think Mr. Ahlquist really hits on some great points, and I find it extremely sad that the cash-strapped Woonsocket will be investing what little funds they have into their defense fund for the cross instead of going forward the a compromise such as the one mentioned here and investing those funds in the restoration of ALL the WW1 dedication sites.
