The "Dixie Doughboy"
The 'Dixie Doughboy', cast bronze, life size
There were 33,331 Soldiers from Florida who served under GEN Pershing in WWI in France (1917-1918) as part of the American Expeditionary Force. They were a small part of the combined 3.5 million Soldiers, Sailors and Marines who served, but for each Florida soldier and family, the commitment was total. Many served with the 31st Infantry Division, a composite Division drawing Soldiers from Georgia, Alabama and Florida. Because of that geography, they were nicknamed the "Dixie Division".
Standing up for all who served in WWI, Soldier, Sailor and Marine, is this "Dixie Doughboy", designed and sculpted by Charles L. Smith for the Veterans Memorial Center, 400 S. Sykes Creek Parkway, Merritt Island, FL 32952. The statue was made possible by a bequest from the estate of USAF Veteran Lewis T. Hornby, 1935-2007. It was molded and cast at the American Bronze Foundry in Sanford, Florida, was installed in the Veterans Memorial in front of the Center and was dedicated on November 11, 2010.
Standing up for all who served in WWI, Soldier, Sailor and Marine, is this "Dixie Doughboy", designed and sculpted by Charles L. Smith for the Veterans Memorial Center, 400 S. Sykes Creek Parkway, Merritt Island, FL 32952. The statue was made possible by a bequest from the estate of USAF Veteran Lewis T. Hornby, 1935-2007. It was molded and cast at the American Bronze Foundry in Sanford, Florida, was installed in the Veterans Memorial in front of the Center and was dedicated on November 11, 2010.
 'Dixie Doughboy' detail |
 'Dixie Doughboy' in memorial plaza |
 'Dixie Doughboy' in plaza |
 'Dixie Doughboy' in foundry |
"SSG Melvin Morris"
On September 17th, 1969, then Staff Sergeant Melvin Morris distinguished himself in combat in Vietnam. With his battalion pinned down by enemy fire from a number of bunkers, Morris led remaining members of the Third Battalion on a daring advance behind enemy lines to retrieve a fallen comrade. Two of the soldiers with him were wounded, and under direct fire, he pulled both to safety. He then attacked four bunkers with grenades, singlehandedly destroying the enemy force, recovering the first fallen comrade, and returning to friendly lines. SSG Morris was wounded three times in this operation.SSG Morris was initially awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, America's second highest award, for his valor in combat. In 2011, the Department of Defense conducted a review of all Distinguished Service Crosses awarded in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. In 2013, of the over 6,000 awards reviewed, the Department of Defense determined 24 should be upgraded. SFC (Ret) Morris was awarded the Medal of Honor in a White House ceremony in 2014. This statue was dedicated in Riverfront Park, Cocoa, Florida, on May 14th, 2015.
"The Beginning"
'The Beginning', carved granite, life size
In May 2000, the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment Memorial Fund, Inc., commissioned Charlie to do the art and design work for a monument commemorating the landing of the 507th in France on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The monument is granite, carved in high relief, thirteen and one-half feet tall, depicting a paratrooper from the 507th on the moment of his landing in occupied France. The monument, quarried and carved in Vire, was installed one kilometer south of Amfreville in Normandy and was dedicated on July 23, 2002. The reunion of the 507th at the dedication of the monument is featured in the film "D-Day, Down to Earth, the Return of the 507th" first broadcast on PBS in May 2004.
The maquette, sculpted by Charlie and used in France to guide construction of the monument, is on permanent display in the Headquarters, 1st Battalion, 507th Infantry (Airborne), Fort Benning, GA.
The maquette, sculpted by Charlie and used in France to guide construction of the monument, is on permanent display in the Headquarters, 1st Battalion, 507th Infantry (Airborne), Fort Benning, GA.
More sculpture, but not as big!
 Maquette for 'Dixie Doughboy', bronze, 16' tall |
 Maquette for 'Dixie Doughboy', view 2 |
 'Seated figure', clay, 10 1/2' tall |
 'Seated Figure', view 2 |
 'Shower', wood, 14' tall |
 'Shower', view 2 |