Monumento a las víctimas del Maine

   Last year while in Key West Florida I reported on my hunting for The USS Maine.  Today here I am in Havana Cuba, visiting the actual site of the disaster and the monument to the Maine itself.  Built in 1925 and called The Monument to the Victims of the USS Maine it honors the American sailors who died in the explosion in 1898.  The monument is on the Malecón Boulevard.  The ship had anchored at Havana at the request of American consul Fitzhugh Lee. The explosion and deaths of over half its crew was the pretext for the United States declaring war on Spain.  Based on photographs from the period, I think our cruise ship dock is near to where the ship sank and the wreckage stayed for years before being salvaged.

  On the monument are the two 10" cannon barrels from the ship's main gun turret.  Heavily rusted, they were recovered from the wreck of the ship.  They are painted black and attached to the base of the monument.

One of the ten inch cannons.

  The monument itself was originally crowned with an American eagle, but its wings extended in such a way that a hurricane damaged it.  This is now in the U.S. Embassy building in Havana.  The eagle was  replaced in 1926 by a new one with horizontal wings.  The newer eagle was pulled downed in 1960 because it was considered a symbol of American imperialism.  The eagle's head was recovered by Swiss diplomats.  It too is now in the Embassy of the United States in Havana.  The body and the wings are stored in the Havana City History Museum.  The museum's curator believes that good relations with the U.S. will be symbolized by the reunification of the parts of the eagle.  I hope to see this happen in my lifetime.

Enjoying a cigar in front of the monument.

Photos by Mark and Janine.   
Thank you to Janine for help in editing this article.