Story: Huge Hydrant for Hounds: Sculpture on Wildwood NJ dog beach

Dogs and their humans to enjoy art along with their beach time

Imagine a dog romping by the ocean, splashing in the water with his human. They run up the beach–and that’s when the pup sees it: a 25-foot tall bright red fire hydrant glinting in the sunshine, with a squirrel sitting on top.

Starting today, this will be a daily occurrence, after the dedication of a fire hydrant sculpture on the beach in Wildwood, New Jersey.

A gift from Morey’s Piers

The 5,000-pound sculpture is a gift to the city of Wildwood from Morey’s Piers & Beachfront Water Parks, in celebration of the area’s first dog-friendly beach. Jack Morey, one of two second-generation partners of Morey’s Piers, hopes the sculpture will become an icon, representing the fun family atmosphere of Wildwood, along with it’s artistic and quirky side.

Sculpture crafted from recycled amusement ride

The humongous hydrant is crafted from parts recycled from a retired snake slide ride. When the ride was dismantled, Morey saved the central core, a tower he describes as “beautiful.” He turned to the artists from artBOX–an area on Morey’s Pier dedicated to art, artisans and music–and asked them to envision how the tower could be repurposed as public art. The result, decorated with bones, pawprints and a squirrel, was designed and built by architect Rich Stokes and Morey’s Piers’ artBOX resident artists, David Macomber, and the father and son team of Peter J. Bieling and Pete C. Bieling.

Dogs are part of the family

Morey–a dog lover with two young Weimaraners and a barking dog ringtone–says,“You can have dogs in New York City. You can have dogs in Paris. You can have dogs on Rodeo Drive and have lunch with them on a sidewalk cafe.” Now they are welcomed on a Wildwood beach. It’s “a family place,” he notes. And of course dogs are part of the family.

Morey says the sculpture is a way to “celebrate the bark in all of us.”

A detail from the fire hydrant while under construction.

The sculpture also acknowledges the dedicated service of the Wildwood Fire Department. (Photo courtesy of Morey’s Piers & Beachfront Water Parks.)

A squirrel rests on one of the giant “nuts” before being placed on top. (Photo courtesy of Morey’s Piers & Beachfront Water Parks.)

The core of the hydrant placed on the beach. (Photo courtesy of Morey’s Piers & Beachfront Water Parks.)

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