William Henry Seward Memorial

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William Henry Seward Memorial
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Memorial in 2007
Memorial in 2007
Location: Florida, NY
Nearest city: Middletown
Coordinates: 41°20′00″N 74°21′27″W / 41.333333, -74.3575Coordinates: 41°20′00″N 74°21′27″W / 41.333333, -74.3575
Built/Founded: 1930
Architect: Daniel Chester French, Richard Henry Dana
Architectural style(s): Classical Revival
Added to NRHP: 1999
NRHP Reference#: 99001489
Governing body: Village of Florida

The William Henry Seward Memorial is located along Main Street (NY 17A/94) in downtown Florida, New York, United States. It commemorates the life of Seward, a Florida native whose career in public service culminated with his tenure as Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln, in which capacity he negotiated the purchase of Alaska from Russia.

It consists of a bronze bust of Seward by Daniel Chester French, who also sculpted Lincoln seated at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, set in the middle of a small circular plaza with benches designed by Richard Henry Dana. Just behind it is S. S. Seward Institute, the local secondary school, named after Seward's father. It was unveiled September 24, 1930, and restored in 2000 after being named to the National Register of Historic Places the year before.

In 2007 the memorial was vandalized. Seward's bust was shifted and one of the benches was cracked. [1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Ramsey Al-Rikabi (12 Jun 2007). Seward's bust gets busted. Times Herald-Record. Retrieved on 2007-06-30.