Information
Landmark: Perry Memorial ArchCity: Bridgeport
Country: USA Connecticut
Continent: North America
Perry Memorial Arch, Bridgeport, USA Connecticut, North America
Overview
The Perry Memorial Arch rises at the entrance to Seaside Park in Bridgeport, Connecticut, marking the spot like a grand stone gateway to one of the city’s most beautiful public landscapes.Built to honor a famed naval hero, it blends remembrance with civic pride, linking Bridgeport’s military story to its long tradition of public gathering spots-places where voices carry across open lawns and laughter drifts through the air.In 1918, the people of Bridgeport commissioned the arch to honor Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, the naval commander whose ships crushed the British at the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813 during the War of 1812.Perry’s famous words-“We have met the enemy and they are ours”-rang out like a drumbeat, becoming a rallying cry that echoed through American naval history.Perry had no real connection to Bridgeport, yet the city still honored him, holding him up as a symbol of American pride and naval might, much like a lone flag snapping in the harbor wind.They built the monument as World War I drew to a close, linking its tribute to the era’s powerful themes of national service and sacrifice.Built from pale Indiana limestone, the arch catches the light and rises with a quiet elegance against the deep green of Seaside Park.Built in the Beaux-Arts style, it shows its classical roots in the even balance of its façade, the carved reliefs, and the crisp lettering etched into stone.Shaped like a triumphal arch, the structure recalls the grand Roman monuments that once marked military victories, stone echoing the clash of shields.Sculpted figures rise from the crown, and below them, carved words pay tribute to Perry’s courage and the proud history of the U. S. Navy.Standing at Seaside Park’s grand entrance, the arch greets visitors with open space beneath its stone curve, guiding them into Bridgeport’s largest and oldest public park while quietly honoring courage, sacrifice, and civic pride.Placed here, it ties the city’s cultural memory to its everyday play-like kids kicking a soccer ball across the plaza-reminding us that public spaces are meant for both joy and quiet thought.Frederick Law Olmsted, the celebrated mind behind Central Park, designed Seaside Park, and that history makes the arch stand out even more as part of a wider legacy of civic beauty-like a stone note in a long, harmonious song.For decades, the arch has stood behind crowds at parades, ceremonies, and other public gatherings, especially on days of military remembrance like Memorial Day, when flags snap in the breeze.Locals often snap photos of it, and heritage tours make it a regular stop-one of Bridgeport’s most recognizable landmarks, gleaming in the afternoon sun.The structure adds to Seaside Park’s historic charm, and the park itself holds a spot on the National Register of Historic Places, where its weathered benches and old brick paths tell their story.Like many civic monuments from the early 1900s, the Perry Memorial Arch has needed regular restoration to keep its pale limestone blocks solid and its carved edges sharp.It’s been carefully kept as part of Bridgeport’s cultural fabric, honoring Oliver Hazard Perry’s legacy while reflecting the city’s pride and ambition during its boom years, when factory whistles echoed through busy streets.The Perry Memorial Arch still rises at the edge of Seaside Park, a proud local landmark and a national monument, its stonework quietly honoring courage, victory, and the spirit that binds the community.
