Park pays tribute to Saratoga military hero
STAMFORD, CONN. » Polish-born General Tadeusz Kosciuszko is one of the most celebrated figures in U.S. military history.
His design of defense works was largely responsible for the American victory in the 1777 Battles of Saratoga, which turned the tide of the Revolutionary War, and he also designed and oversaw construction of fortifications at West Point.
Towns, bridges and many landmarks are named for him including a seven-acre park on the north shore of Long Island Sound in Stamford, Ct.
Thomas Jefferson said of Kosciuszko: “He is as pure a son of liberty as I have ever known.”
This perhaps explains why his legacy is celebrated so many places throughout the U.S. and around the world, from Kosciuszko, Mississippi — population 7,402 — to Mount Kosciuszko, the highest peak in Australia.
Stamford’s Kosciuszko Park is a waterfront peninsula with a wide mile-long walkway around the perimeter, which encircles ball fields and a children’s playground. Narrower loop trails extend down closer to the water.
It was created in 1974 from an area that was previously part of a landfill between Stamford Harbor’s East and West branches.
At one time, this section of Stamford was quite unattractive. The park is now surrounded by $3.5 billion Harbor Point, an urban waterfront redevelopment project. It is a mixed-use real estate venture with luxury residential, office and retail space.
The entrance to Kosciuszko Park has a monument that bears his likeness. The American flag flies high overhead, with the red-and-white Polish flag and Connecticut state flag beneath it.
After the Revolution, Kosciuszko lived in Philadelphia at 3rd and Pine streets, which is now the Kosciuszko House. He died 200 years ago in his native Poland on Oct. 15, 1817.
Some tributes to this skilled military engineer are much larger such as the Kosciusko Bridge, also called “Twin Bridges,” over the Mohawk River that connects Saratoga and Albany counties, on the Northway.
Kosciusko Park, although somewhat hidden in Stamford, is one of many reminders about this Polish hero’s life, which was dedicated to promoting the rights of free peoples everywhere.
“He served America with courage and distinction,” George Washington said.