Remembering fallen soldiers

Originally called Decoration Day, this Memorial Day marks the 158^th iteration of honoring our fallen soldiers. The Riverdale Monument is not as old, but since 1930, it has stood as a symbol of remembrance, perseverance and fortitude.

Designed by famed local architect, Dwight James Baum, the Riverdale/Spuyten Duyvil/Kingsbridge Memorial Bell Tower (or Riverdale Monument,) stands on a small swath of land at West 239^th Street and Henry Hudson Parkway.

On all four sides, three large bronze plaques list the names of soldiers from Riverdale Spuyten Duyvil and Kingsbridge who served in WWI. 

The 50-foot monument, made of fieldstone and Indiana limestone, houses a 500-ton bell cast in 1762 and made for a Mexican monastery. It was captured by US Army General Winfield Scott during the Mexican War (1846-48.) Over time, the bell found itself in NYC, moving from Greenwich Village then to a Riverdale firehouse. Prior to its current location, it stood about 700 feet north, before it was moved to make way for construction of the Henry Hudson Parkway.

Today, the memorial stands as a symbol of community where individuals gather to not only commemorate Memorial and Veterans’ Day, but for events year-round. It’s where locals rally and where politicians hold pressers. During the holidays, it illustrates the interfaith diversity of the neighborhood, being home to both, the annual lighting of the Christmas tree and the largest menorah in the Bronx.

It also a serves as a stark reminder of the ongoing wars and conflicts throughout our history. While Memorial Day was meant to honor lives lost during the Civil War, much blood has been shed since then – and continues to be.

When the Israeli-Palestinian conflict resurged, locals rallied around the Bell Tower Park memorial to grieve. It's where residents gathered to celebrate the release of the Israeli hostages, but also where they gathered to mourn their deaths. 

Other times, one can find residents sitting at one of the benches -- that were also part of the World’s Fair in Queens -- soaking up the sun and craning their necks to look up at the monument.

In late 1999, Bell Tower Park was named a Greenstreets site – a city Parks initiative with the NYC Department of Transportation to convert paved street triangles and malls, into green spaces.

Whether it’s marveling at the centuries-old bell or reading the names of those who fought for our freedoms so many years ago, the tower imbues a sense of patriotism, a quiet pride.

The lives lost in the line of duty live on in the hearts of those who remember them fondly; those who hold on tightly to old letters and framed pictures of soldiers in crisp uniforms.

South of 246^th Street in Van Cortlandt Park, a walk down Broadway inspires a similar feeling, where 39 bronze plaques are tucked into the grass with a small American flag poked into the ground beside each of them. On it, they read the names of Bronxites who died in war.

The plaques are easy to miss if you’re not paying attention. Even more reason to slow down and be grateful for the freedoms fought for us by the sons and daughters who never made it back home so we could stop and smell the roses.