General Casimir Pulaski, (sculpture).

General Casimir Pulaski, (sculpture).

Chodzinski, Kasimir, 1861-ca. 1920, sculptor.

Ross, Albert Randolf, architect.

Maine & New Hampshire Granite Company, contractor.

Gorham Manufacturing Company, founder.

General Casimir Pulaski, (sculpture).

Count Casimir Pulaski, (sculpture).

Brigadier General Count Casimir Pulaski, (sculpture).

1910. Dedicated May 11, 1910.

Digital Reference:

Sculpture: bronze; Base: granite.

Sculpture: approx. H. 15 ft. W. 12 ft.; Base: approx. H. 12 ft. W. 15 ft.

(Base, left side:) BRANDY WINE/VALLEY FORGE/EGG HARBOR (Base, back rounded end:) BRIGADIER GENERAL US/MARSHAL GENERAL POLAND (Base, right side:) CHARLESTOWN/SAVANNAH/GERMANTOWN (Base, front rounded end:) BRIGADIER GENERAL/CASIMIR PULASKI/1741-1779/FELL IN BATTLE AT SAVANNAH

(Base plaque:) BRIGADIER GENERAL/CASIMIR PULASKI/1748-1779/THE BRONZE EQUESTRIAN STATUE OF BRIGADIER GENERAL CASIMIR PULASKI,/PORTRAYS THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR HERO IN/THE UNIFORM OF A POLISH CAVALRY COMMANDER./BORN IN WNIARY, POLAND ON MARCH 4, 1748/TO A NOBLE FAMILY, PULASKI GAINED PROMINENCE IN EUROPE FOR HIS ROLE IN/DEFENDING LIBERTY IN POLAND. EXCITED BY/THE STRUGGLE OF THE EMERGING AMERICAN REPUBLIC, PULASKI JOINED IN ITS FIGHT/FOR INDEPENDENCE, ARRIVING IN BOSTON/IN JULY, 1777./PULASKI WAS GIVEN A COMMISSION AS/BRIGADIER GENERAL AND CHIEF OF CAVALRY/IN COMMAND OF ALL CAVALRY OF THE AMERICAN/FORCES. HE WAS PRESENT AT GERMANTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA AND LED HIS LEGION AT/HADDONFIELD, NEW JERSEY; EGG HARBOR,/NEW JERSEY; CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA;/AND SAVANNAH, GEORGIA./AT SAVANNAH, PULASKI WAS MORTALLY/WOUNDED AND WAS TAKEN ABOARD THE/AMERICAN BRIG, WASP, WHERE HE DIED AND/WAS BURIED AT SEA, ON OCTOBER 11, 1779./HE WAS 31 YEARS OLD./THE STATUE WAS DESIGNED BY THE/SCULPTOR KAZIMIERZ CHODZINSKI AND/ARCHITECT ALBERT R. ROSS. IT WAS/ERECTED IN 1910.

Equestrian portrait of Revolutionary War hero Brigadier General Pulaski dressed in the uniform of a cavalry commander from his native Poland. His uniform consists of a military jacket with a long cape and a hat adorned with fur and feathers. His feet are in the stirrups and he holds the horse's reins with both hands. The horse trots with its head raised up and its proper right foot raised. The sculpture rests on an oval base decorated with a band of foliage and greek key design. Wreathes flank the inscriptions which appear on the long sides of the base. Three steps lead up to the base.

Portrait male -- Pulaski, Casimir -- Full length

Ethnic -- Polish

Occupation -- Military -- General

Dress -- Uniform -- Military Uniform

History -- United States -- Revolution

Outdoor Sculpture -- District of Columbia -- Washington

Administered by United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Washington, District of Columbia

Located Pennsylvania Avenue & 13th Street, N.W., Washington, District of Columbia

By the time of the American Revolution, Polish Count Casimir Pulaski (1748-1779) had already made a name for himself fighting for liberty in his native Poland. His excitement over the American struggle for independence brought him to this country to join the Continental Army. He was made a brigadier general and put in command of the cavalry. His Revolutionary War battles included Haddonfield, New Jersey; Egg Harbor, New Jersey; Charlestown, South Carolina; and Savannah, Georgia where he was mortally wounded at the age of 31.

Sculpture was authorized by an act of Congress on February 27, 1903. Total cost of the monument was $50,000. The sculptor was chosen by request of Polish-American societies, particularly in Chicago. IAS files contain an excerpt from Jannelle Warren-Findley's Aug. 1, 1985 report for the National Park Service entitled, "A Guide to Selected Statues, Monuments and Memorials," National Capital Parks - Central, National Park Service, Washington, D.C. (RFQ 3-4-1919) which includes a brief maintenance history, a list of bibliographic sources, and notes to additional information found in National Park Service files.

Monumental News, Jan. 1910, March 1910, July 1910.

National Park Service, American Monuments and Outdoor Sculpture Database, DC0072, 1989.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, District of Columbia survey, 1994.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, pg. 366.

Michael Richman, SAAM curatorial assistant, 1967-1969.

Goode, James M., "The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C., A Comprehensive Historical Guide," Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974, J-7.

Monumental News, July 1910, cover.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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