General Franz Sigel
Artist: Bitter, Karl, 1867-1915, sculptor
With: Bosworth, William Welles, architect, Jno. Williams, Inc., founder
Status: In Situ and Within Riverside Park
Title: General Franz Sigel
Dates: Commissioned 1904. Cast 1907. Dedicated Oct. 1907
Medium: Sculpture: bronze; Base: Rockport granite.
Dimensions: Sculpture: approx. 10 x 5 x 11 ft.; Base: approx. 6 ft. 2 in. x 5 ft. 8 in. x 10 ft. Figure H: 11’9″; Pedestal H: 6’3″ L: 10′ W: 5’8″; base H: 2’3″ L: 10′ W: 5’8″
Inscription: KARL BITTER/JNO Williams/Founder (Front of base:) FRANZ SIGEL signed Founder’s mark appears.
Description: Bronze equestrian statue depicting General Franz Sigel on his horse which is mounted on a rectangular base. The sculpture and base are installed at the top of a flight of stairs. Equestrian figure (over life-size) with integral plinth on a pedestal that rests on a base that allows the monument to sit at the top of a staircase.
Owner: City of New York, Department of Parks and Recreation, New York, New York.
Located Riverside Park, Riverside Drive & West 106th Street, New York, New York.
Remarks: Willis Bosworth designed the base. Bitter won the commission in 1904 and selected the site of the monument, at the top of a flight of stairs. Sigel was a German-American who rallied the German communities in the U.S. behind the Union during the Civil War. He contributed to the Union victory in Missouri at the Battle of Pea Ridge. After moving to New York City in 1867, he established a career in journalism and politics and became an important leader within the German-American community. The sculpture was a gift to the City of New York from the Sigel Monument Association and the artist designed it to be seen by viewers from the base of the stairs, at street-level, and even on boats traversing the Hudson River. In 1941, Sigel’s bronze sword was dislodged and reattached by Parks crews, and was later removed to storage for safekeeping. Following conservation of the sculpture in 2004 by the Citywide Monuments Conservation Program—that included the reattachment of the long-salvaged sword—an endowment was established with Riverside Park Fund in memory of Thelma and Alex Schwarz to provide for the monument’s care in perpetuity. Ongoing horticultural work along the adjoining hillside provided by Riverside Park Fund beautifies the setting of this historical monument.
References:
Gayle, Margot & Michele Cohen, “Guide to Manhattan’s Outdoor Sculpture,” New York: Prentice Hall, 1988, p. 286.
National Park Service, American Monuments and Outdoor Sculpture Database, NY5139, 1989.
Durante, Dianne L., Outdoor Monument of Manhattan: A Historical Guide, New York: New York University Press, 2007, 215-218.