Robert A. Gray Monument - Fort Griswold - Groton, CT, USA - Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on Waymarking.com

This is a multi-tiered granite monument standing in a large grass area next to the Monument House Museum in Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park. It is topped by a statue of a Civil War Soldier. The marker reads:

ERECTED BY
ROBERT A. GRAY
AND DEDICATED TO
THE MEMORY OF
HIS BRAVE COMRADES
WHO OFFERED THEIR LIVES
FOR THEIR COUNTRY
IN THE WAR OF
1861 - 1865

Between the statue at the top and the engraved memorial on the main body of the monument are the following:

FREDERICKSBURG [Front]
DREWRY'S BLUFF [Left Side]
GETTYSBURG [Rear]
PORT HUDSON [Right Side]

"The monument contains a standing figure of a uniformed Civil War soldier with his proper left foot forward so that his toe projects over the front edge of the sculpture's base. In his hands he grasps the muzzle of a rifle with his proper right hand over his proper left hand. A kit is suspended from his overcoat belt and a bayonet is on his proper left hip. He has a moustache and wears a cap and a cape which is thrown back over his proper right shoulder. The soldier stands atop a tall base adorned on the front with the raised image of overlapping shields of the United States and the state of Connecticut. The shields are partially surrounded by a laurel wreath. At the top of the base, each side is embellished with a raised image of a wreath. At the foot of the base there is a shallow plinth of light-grey granite.

The monument commemorates soldiers who died in the Civil War. It was erected by Robert A. Gray, a partner in the Groton firm of Merritt, Gray & Company, granite and marble works, and a representative in the State Legislature. In 1862, Gray enlisted in Company C, 21st Regiment, Connecticut Volunteers, and the battles listed on the monument are those in which he fought. For distinguished gallantry at Drewry's Bluff on May 16, 1864, in 1897 he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. Gray gave the monument to the Groton Monument Association by testamentary gift, and Frederick Dill, one of his executors, and Charles E. White, selected the monument." (visit link)

"This is the historic site where, on September 6, 1781, British Forces, commanded by the infamous Benedict Arnold, captured the Fort and massacred 88 of the 165 defenders stationed there. The Ebenezer Avery House which sheltered the wounded after the battle has been restored on the grounds. A Revolutionary War museum also depicts the era. Fort Griswold was designated as a state park in 1953." (visit link)

TITLE: Robert A. Gray Monument ARTIST(S): Unknown DATE: 7/4/1916 MEDIUM: Sculpture: tan granite; Base: tan granite; Base plinth: light gray granite. CONTROL NUMBER: IAS CT000257 Direct Link to the Individual Listing in the Smithsonian Art Inventory: [Web Link] PHYSICAL LOCATION: Monument Street & Park Avenue Groton, CT USA 06340 DIFFERENCES NOTED BETWEEN THE INVENTORY LISTING AND YOUR OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH: None noted. This one is well documented.

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date of your visit, your impressions of the sculpture, and at least ONE ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH. Add any additional information you may have, particularly any personal observations about the condition of the sculpture.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   05/06/2013 Chasing Blue Sky visited it