Fitz-Greene Halleck, Bronze sculpture in Central Park, United States.
The bronze statue of Fitz-Greene Halleck by James Wilson Alexander MacDonald was cast in 1876 and installed in 1877 near the Literary Walk and The Mall in Central Park. It shows the poet standing, and it was the first statue in the park to depict an American.
The monument was unveiled in 1877 and marked an important moment in honoring American literature in the city. It was among the earliest public monuments dedicated to an American poet established in this park.
The statue honors a 19th-century poet whose writing shaped American literature during his lifetime. It stands among other writer monuments on Literary Walk, showing how the city celebrated its literary voices.
The monument sits at Mid-Park near East 66th Street and is easy to reach on foot. It sits directly along a main pathway, allowing visitors to see several literary monuments while walking through the area.
Halleck is often called the least-known figure on the Literary Walk, yet his 1877 unveiling was attended by President Rutherford B. Hayes, the first time a US president unveiled a memorial. About 10,000 people came, and the guest list included General William T. Sherman and poets Bayard Taylor and George Henry Boker.
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