Saratoga Park is a

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to re ...

Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Bedford–Stuyvesant (), colloquially known as Bed–Stuy, is a neighborhood in the northern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Bedford–Stuyvesant is bordered by Flushing Avenue to the north (bordering Williamsburg), Classon Av ...

. It is bordered by Halsey Street, Saratoga Avenue, Macon Street, and Howard Avenue.

History

Prior to becoming a park the land was used to host

travelling circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicycl ...

es. In 1896 it was purchased by the City of Brooklyn to convert into a park. After the park was created, the circus and event field moved just east across Saratoga Avenue and continued operating until 1912.

War Memorial

In 1920, local Citizen's Memorial Committees commissioned a memorial to honor those from the neighborhood who lost their lives in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The monument was dedicated on September 11, 1921. The memorial consisted of two scrolls listing the 104 men who died in the war, and, notably, the first woman

Marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

buried with full military honors. Between the scrolls stood a bronze figure of Columbia sculpted by James Novelli and cast by

Roman Bronze Works Roman Bronze Works, now operated as Roman Bronze Studios, is a bronze foundry in New York City. Established in 1897 by Riccardo Bertelli, it was the first American foundry to specialize in the lost-wax casting method, and was the country's pre-emin ...

. In the late 20th century, the monument fell into disrepair; its plaques were stolen in 1970. Thirty years later, in 2000, the main statue was also stolen. The investigation that followed retrieved pieces of the statue from a scrapyard. After the pedestal stood empty for more than ten years, discretionary funding was allocated by

Councilmember A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries. Canada Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...

Darlene Mealy Darlene Mealy is an American politician who is a member of the New York City Council from the 41st district, which includes Brownsville, Bushwick, Crown Heights, East Flatbush and Prospect Lefferts Gardens in Brooklyn. A Democrat, Mealy prev ...

to recreate the monument from archival photos and the recovered pieces of the original monument. On September 10, 2014, the monument was rededicated at a ceremony attended by Mealy and

Eric Adams Eric Leroy Adams (born September 1, 1960) is an American politician and retired police captain serving as the 110th mayor of New York City since January 1, 2022. Adams was an officer in the New York City Transit Police and then the New York C ...

References

{{Protected areas of New York City 1896 establishments in New York City Protected areas established in 1896 Urban public parks Parks in Brooklyn Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn