This statue of a Naval Officer overlooking the St. Johns River on the San Marco side of Jacksonville is often referred to as "The Lone Sailor", but that's actually a misnomer of sorts. The original "Lone Sailor" statue (created by Stanley Bleifeld, the United States Navy Memorial's official sculptor) is in Washington, DC, and was chosen from four different models Bleifeld offered.
This model, depicting the sailor leaning pensively forward, was a close contender but was passed up in favor of the one standing straight up. It was dubbed the "Liberty Hound" and subsequently commissioned for the Jacksonville Navy Memorial in 1987.
... ah ... having been one ... I know it is an Enlisted man and not an officer !
ReplyDeleteI thought the same thing myself, and found it puzzling, but went with the term "officer" as that is what I have read on news articles about the statue. - JSH
DeleteHe is a Second Class Petty Officer.
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