The applicant is requesting approval for the addition of a 10" x 4" bronze name plaque for James R. Mastin, the sculptor who created the Haitian Monument in Franklin Square. MPC File No. 22-005078-MON

The Haitian Monument in Franklin Square honors the largest unit of men of African descent who were recruited from present-day Haiti to serve in the Revolutionary War. The monument recognizes the contribution of the all-Black Chasseurs-Volontaires de Saint-Domingue to the fight for American independence. Few Black regiments fought on the American side during the Revolutionary War. The Chasseurs-Volontaires, at that time the French colony of Saint-Domingue, was the largest Black regiment to serve in that war. Although they had been enlisted to occupy an auxiliary role, the Chasseurs-Volontaires did serve on the front line, the 545-strong force providing cover for their French allies during the Siege of Savannah in 1779.  

The Haitian monument depicts six members of the Chasseurs-Volontaires de Saint-Domingue, mounted atop a 6 ft. by 16 ft. granite pillar, the sides of which are inscribed the history of the regiment and the men’s contribution to American independence. The life-sized bronze figures are intended, with one exception, to represent the nameless Black soldiers who fought in the regiment: few records survive of the names and histories of the men themselves. The drummer boy, more famously, is Henri Christophe, first leader of independent Haiti. In his early teens when he joined the Chasseurs-Volontaires, Christophe is believed (though firm proof does not exist) to have participated in the Siege of Savannah.

Most of the impetus for the creation of the memorial came from the Miami-based Haitian-American Historical Society. Founded in 2001, one of the Society’s first projects was to obtain recognition of the role played by soldiers of pre-Revolutionary Haiti in America’s own independence. Society members spent a total of seven years drumming up support for the monument from Savannah officials and securing (in two stages) the over $500,000 needed to construct the memorial. The Haitian Monument was dedicated in two phases. As the initial fundraising allowed for the completion of only four of the planned six figures, a partially-completed monument with those four figures in place was unveiled in 2007. The final monument, with its two additional figures, was unveiled in October 2009.

The Historic Site and Monument Commission recommends approval to the Savannah City Council for the addition of a name plaque for James Mastin, the sculptor of the Haitian Monument in Franklin Square with the following conditions because otherwise the project meets the standards in the Master Plan and Guidelines for Markers, Monuments and Public Art:

1. Relocate the plaque to the rear of the monument; provide the new location to the staff.
2. Ensure that the font height of the top line is a minimum of 1" and that the text of the bottom line is not less than 1/2" in height; provide the dimensioned mockup to staff.
3. Provide an escrow payment as required by the City.