Memorial Park, Urban park and National Historic Place in Jacksonville, Florida.
Memorial Park is a 5.85-acre public park on the north bank of the St. Johns River in Jacksonville's Riverside neighborhood, bounded by Riverside Avenue. The Olmsted Brothers and local architect Roy A. Benjamin designed it around a central bronze sculpture, "Spiritualized Life" by Charles Adrian Pillars, set in a fountain. A balustrade runs along the seawall.
The park was established in 1919 to honor military service and create public space in the community. This founding followed World War I and reflects the period's focus on remembering those who served.
The bronze figure Spiritualized Life, by Charles Adrian Pillars, shows a winged youth holding an olive branch above swirling waters and struggling human figures. A plaque beside the fountain carries Pillars's own words on the work. Two 48-inch bronze eagles by Diane LaFond Insetta, dedicated on 29 May 2011, reproduce concrete statues from the park's opening.
The park sits on the north bank of the St. Johns River, bounded by Riverside Avenue. Its seawall balustrade was destroyed by the sea surge of Hurricane Irma in 2017 and partly destroyed again by Hurricane Idalia in 2023, so check conditions after storms. The bronze eagles stand near the riverfront.
Two 48-inch bronze eagles flank the park, donated by the Memorial Park Association and dedicated on May 29, 2011. Sculptor Diane LaFond Insetta modelled them on photographs of concrete statues installed when the park opened in 1924.
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