I was riding my bike in Melrose when I saw this monument on Main Street, next to Ell Pond.
It appears to be a memorial for Clarence DeMar, who certainly deserves one. But for some reason, whoever designed the monument (a committee?) added the confusingly worded Bill Rodgers reference. Perhaps they were trying to justify the Marathon City boosterism, but all it does is diminish the accomplishments of both men. DeMar and Rodgers each deserve their own memorial.
I searched the Internet, but couldn’t find anything that tells the story behind this monument. If you know something, tell us in the comments!
