Memorial John Purroy Mitchel

A memorial to John Purroy Mitchel stands in Central Park.
Dedicated in 1928, the bronze and granite monument consists of a stele, bust, and decorative wall and is located on the east bank of Central Park. The granite stele was designed by architects Thomas Hastings and Don Barber. German-born sculptor Adolph Alexander Weinman was commissioned to design the gilded bronze portrait bust.

The memorial reads:
“In memory of John Purroy Mitchel
Mayor of New York 1914-1918
Born July 19, 1879
Died in the service of the United States
July 6, 1918”

John Purroy Mitchel (1879-1918) was born and raised in an Irish Catholic family. As mayor of New York from 1914 to 1917, he was known for his idealism and scrupulous honesty. He was the youngest mayor in New York City history.
Mitchel enlisted to serve in World War I and joined the Army Aviation Corps. On July 6, 1918, he was killed instantly when he fell 500 feet from his plane to the ground during a training flight in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar
• Photos: Caroline Vinck