Aurora Hill Plot
Casoni and Isola
1872
NHL, NR-P

This exquisite white marble pillar is dedicated to Admiral Farragut, a Civil War hero loyal to the Union and the first officer to hold the ranks of rear admiral, vice admiral and admiral in the United States Navy. Farragut was widely praised for his victories in the Battle of New Orleans and the Battle of Mobile Bay. After the Civil War, Farragut lived in New York City until his death in 1870 at the age of 69, and was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery. Situated on Woodlawn’s first circular mound, a gift from the cemetery, Farragut was the first person to be buried in the Aurora Hill Plot. The monument, which set an architectural standard in its day, is shaped into a broken ship’s mast and is draped with an American flag, a symbol of a life gone too soon. At the base, it is decorated with military emblems and other insignia of naval warfare: three shields, a sword, compass, sextant, block and tackle, and an anchor and rope. The pedestal bears the inscriptions for Farragut, his wife, son and daughter-in-law. The monument was manufactured by Casoni and Isola, a New York City-based firm that owned a shop on Broadway, as well as extensive marble quarries in Carrara, Italy. The firm also fabricated the Seventh Regiment Memorial in Central Park. The Admiral David Glasgow Farragut Gravesite is a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register on Historic Places.