In 1899, Charles C. Hemming, a wealthy Colorado banker and Confederate veteran, donated this 62-foot tall Confederate monument to the City of Jacksonville, along with enough money to buy a whole city block as its showcase. Jacksonville was the city of Hemming's birth. Today, the city block housing the monument, in the center of downtown Jacksonville, is called Hemming Plaza. The Confederate monument was one of the few structures that survived Jacksonville's Great Fire of 1901. The park is located across the street from the Jacksonville City Hall and is a popular hangout for the homeless.
Additional information about this memorial is available online (visit link).
From the Smithsonian Art Inventory page:
"Inscription: (On relief plaque on front of base, raised letters:) (above bust:) TRIED AND TRUE (below bust:) J.J.DICKINSON (On relief plaque on back of base, raised letters:) (above bust:) A CHRISTIAN SOLDIER (below bust:) E. KIRBY SMITH. (On one side of base, on plaque, raised letters:) TO THE SOLDIERS OF FLORIDA/THIS SHAFT IS BY A COMRADE RAISED IN/TESTIMONY OF HIS LOVE, RECALLING DEEDS/IMMORTAL, HEROISM UNSURPASSED. WITH RANKS UNBROKEN, RAGGED, STARVED/AND DECIMATED, THE SOUTHERN SOLDIER,/FOR DUTY'S SAKE, UNDAUNTED STOOD TO/THE FRONT OF BATTLE UNTIL NO LIGHT/REMAINED TO ILLUMINE THE FIELD OF CAR-/NAGE, SAVE THE LUSTRE OF HIS CHIVALRY/AND COURAGE./"NOR SHALL YOUR GLORY BE FORGOT/WHILE FAME HER RECORD KEEPS,/OR HONOR POINTS THE HALLOWED SPOT/WHERE VALOR PROUDLY SLEEPS." (Below plaque, on base:) CONFEDERATE MEMORIAL/1861-1865 (On plaque on other side of base, raised letters:) OUR HEROES (below plaque, incised letters:) GOD BLESS OUR COUNTRY/1898
Description: A tall shaft, with at the top a young Confederate soldier of bronze, and at the bottom a rectangular base with four relief panels and pediment carvings. At the top, the soldier stands at parade rest, with both arms resting on the barrel of his rifle, the butt of which is on the ground in front of his proper right foot. He wears a visored cap, a great-coat and short cape which appears to ruffle in the wind.
The base is decorated with relief plaques on each side. The front plaque is a bust of J. J. Dickinson, dressed in the uniform of a Confederate officer, including a hat with feathers. Above him, the pediment is decorated with two crossed sabres and a bugle. The rear base plaque depicts a bust of E. Kirby Smith, also in military uniform. Above him are two crossed rifles. One side of the base has a text inscription plaque, with pediment decoration of two crossed oars and an anchor. The other side of the base has a relief plaque of a battle scene, with troops on horseback and on foot. Above them are two crossed cannons. The entire monument sits in a rectangular pool."