The Korean War Memorial at Battery Park

One of the most beautifully designed memorials in all of Battery Park is the Korean War Memorial.  The Korean War Veterans Committee formed in 1987 to raise money for a memorial of the soldiers of  the Korean War - "the forgotten war."  A contest was held for the design and Mac Adams, a Welsh designer, won.  His design is genius.  It is a black granite stele which stands 15 feet hight.  Cut into the middle of the stele is the silhouette of a soldier also known as "The Universal Solider."  When looking through the stele towards the Hudson river, you can see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island through the silhouette.  The most ingenious features, in my opinion, is that the stele also works as a sundial and every year on July 27 at 10 a.m. the sun shines through the soldiers' head illuminated a commemorative plaque on the ground.  That date and time are important because they mark the exact moment that in New York when hostilities ceased in Korea.  On the base of the monument is a tier with multinational flags.  Those are the flags of the U.N. countries that participated in the mission. Around the base of the memorial are carved the names of each of these 22 countries along with the number of their dead , wounded, and missing in action.  The memorial was dedicated in 1991 and was actually one of the first Korean War memorials in the United States.  It is a beautiful memorial and I highly encourage everyone to go see it while they are in Battery Park.  Every inch is beautifully designed and well thought out, honorably commemorating the soldiers of the "forgotten war."