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One Hundred Seventh Infantry Memorial

History

This text is part of Parks’ Historical Signs Project and can be found postedwithin the park.

Who is this monument dedicated to?
Sculptor Karl Illava (1896–1954) created this dynamic bronze figural group depicting seven larger-than-life-sized World War I foot soldiers in battle. This monument expresses the comradery of common American “doughboys,” a term coined by British soldiers in World War I to describe their American counterparts (large round buttons on the Americans’ uniforms reminded the British of biscuits known as doughboys).

How was this created?
The piece, set on a massive, stepped granite platform designed by architects Rogers and Haneman, was donated by the Seventh Regiment New York 107th United Infantry Memorial Committee and was dedicated on September 27, 1927. Taking advantage of its position at the end of East 67th Street at Fifth Avenue, Illava’s soldiers are in active poses, advancing from the wooded thicket bordering Central Park, as if mounting a charge. Illava even described the sculpted soldiers as “the doughboys chasing each other out of Central Park.” The sculptor drew from his own experience serving as a sergeant with the 107th, and even used his own hands as models for the soldiers’ hands.

The 107th Infantry Memorial is one of the many pieces in Central Park to honor soldiers and their heroism. This memorial, however, employs a unique mode of tribute, commemorating the common, citizen-soldiers of World War I as opposed to any single, high-ranking general. Such a memorial approach reflects Central Park designers Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903) and Calvert Vaux’s (1824-1895) intention to shape Central Park as a landscape and artistic space for the common man. The Seventh Regiment Memorial, located on West Drive at 67th Street and dedicated on June 22, 1874, was the first of the park’s sculptures to memorialize a symbolic, unnamed soldier, and served as a striking contrast to Europe’s contemporary war monuments.

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  • Group of seven figures (over life-size) with integral plinth, on a pedestal
  • Group of seven figures (over life-size) with integral plinth, on a pedestal

One Hundred Seventh Infantry Memorial Details

  • Location: Fifth Avenue at 67th Street
  • Sculptor: Karl Morningstar Illava
  • Architect: Rogers & Haneman
  • Description: Group of seven figures (over life-size) with integral plinth, on a pedestal
  • Materials: Bronze, North Jay granite
  • Dimensions: Group H: 9'11" W: 15'8' D: 10'; Pedestal H: 7'7" W: 32'8"
  • Cast: 1927
  • Dedicated: September 29, 1927
  • Foundry: Fond. G. Vignali, Firenze
  • Donor: 7th Regiment and 107th Infantry Memorial Committee
  • Inscription: SEVENTH REGIMENT NEW YORK / ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTH UNITED INFANTRY / 1917 IN MEMORIAM 1918

Please note, the NAME field includes a primary designation as well as alternate namingsoften in common or popular usage. The DEDICATED field refers to the most recent dedication, most often, butnot necessarily the original dedication date. If the monument did not have a formal dedication, the yearlisted reflects the date of installation.

For more information, please contact Art & Antiquities at (212) 360-8163

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