Bowen, William Parry, 1845-1930

The cornerstone of the Pulaski Monument was placed in ceremonies on the afternoon of Oct. 11, 1853. Present for the occasion were Savannah militia units, local Masonic lodges, and a large number of citizens. Henry Williams delivered the main address, after which William Bowen read the following tribute to Pulaski: "This parchment is to record the laying of the corner-stone of a Monument in the centre of Monterey Square, at the junction of Bull and Wayne streets, (City of Savannah) to the memory of Brigadier-General County Pulaski, who fell mortally wounded by a swivel shot while on a charge at the head of a body of cavalry before the British lines, at the Siege of Savannah, on the ninth day of October, seventeen hundred and seventy-nine. Count Casimir Pulaski was born in the province of Lithuania, Poland, in the year seventeen hundred and forty-six. Arrived in the United States in the year seventeen hundred and seventy-seven (1777), and volunteered his service to the American Government in the great and glorious cause of Liberty and Freedom from British tyranny - received a commission from the Government as Brigadier-General of Cavalry, and fought gallantly in the battles of this country at Brandwine, Germantown, Trenton, Charleston, and Savannah. Aged 33. Robert E. Launitz, of New-York, Designer. M. Lufburrow and E. Jones, builders of the foundation." (Signed) Richard D. Arnold, Chairman of Commissioners. Wm. Robertsons, by Geo. Robertson, Jun., Treasurer. Wm. P. Bowen, Sen., Secretary and Commissioner. GeorgiaInfo. http://georgiainfo.galileo.usg.edu/statues/pulaskimon.htm Retrieved 3/13/2009.

Richard Dennis Arnold, a physician, was born in Savannah, Georgia, the son of Joseph Arnold and Eliza Dennis, occupations unknown. Despite hardships accompanying the deaths of both parents during childhood, Arnold, who had been an only child, received an excellent preliminary education and graduated with distinction from Princeton in 1826. He immediately began a medical apprenticeship under William R. Waring, a distinguished preceptor and member of an illustrious Charleston and Savannah family of physicians. After receiving his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1830, Arnold served for two years as a resident house officer in Philadelphia's old Blockley Hospital before returning to Savannah where in 1833 he married Margaret Baugh Stirk. Antebellum southern culture afforded numerous opportunities for able and energetic young men to contribute to community life far beyond the requirements and duties of a profession or vocation. Thus, while still in his mid-twenties, along with the vicissitudes of beginning medical practice Arnold entered on the various activities of an ever-widening public career that filled his lifetime. In 1833 he bought half interest in the Savannah Daily Georgian, and although he sold it two years later the editorial venture exercised his literary talents and whetted his interest in politics and public service. An ardent Jackson Democrat, he served in both houses of the state legislature, 1839-1843, was first elected a city alderman in 1842, and in 1843 began the first of four nonconsecutive terms as mayor of Savannah. His efforts for public improvement also included sponsorship of a state vital statistics registration law, support for sanitary reforms in Savannah, and service on the boards of health, water, and education, both state and local. He was also a founder in 1839 of the Georgia Historical Society. American National Biography Online. http://www.anb.org/articles/12/12-00025.html?a=1&f=arnold%2C%20richard%20dennis&ia=-at&ib=-bib&d=10&ss=0&q=1 Retrieved 3/13/2009.

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