Lincoln the Mystic Memorial

Lincoln the Mystic Memorial

• Located in Hudson County Park | East Entrance | Lincoln Park, Jersey City

James Earle Fraser (November 4, 1876 – October 11, 1953) was an great American sculptor during the early half of the 20th century. His work is integral to many of Washington, D.C.’s most iconic structures that still reside and are visited today. “Lincoln the Mystic” is a seated statue of the US President that was sculpted by James Earle Fraser and was dedicated on June 14, 1930 when the park was given its current name of Lincoln Park, Jersey City. This statue is the original of two, the replica being located on the campus of Syracuse University. Fraser was also responsible for many other iconic, public monuments such as The End of the Trail, Alexander Hamilton at the federal Treasury Building, statues of Lewis & Clark, Thomas Jefferson, John Erickson, and Teddy Roosevelt that once stood outside New York’s Museum of Natural History.

Jersey City is the home of America’s most fervent Lincoln appreciation society. Its celebration of Lincoln’s birthday has occurred every year since 1866. In 1926, the society launched a fund- raising drive for a Lincoln statue which led to the creation of Fraser’s statue. The unveiling was held on Flag Day, June 14th, 1930 that was attended by the governor of New Jersey, members of the Lincoln society, local politicians, a small delegation of Civil War veterans and an audience of 4,000.

The first coast-to-coast highway in America was called the Lincoln Highway but was rendered insignificant once the federal government began working on a system of national, numbered highways. However, once plans for a Lincoln Statue was in the works the location was settled to be near the terminus of the Lincoln Highway.

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