Academy honors 'father of Coast Guard'

October 12, 2018 12:00 am • Last Updated: October 12, 2018 11:12 pm

By Sean D. Elliot
Director of Photography

s.elliot@theday.com

Members of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Class of 1963 move in for a closer look at their gift to the academy, a statue of Coast Guard founder Alexander Hamilton, on Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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New London — The U.S. Coast Guard Academy Class of 1963 on Friday unveiled a statue of Coast Guard founder Alexander Hamilton in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy.

The 9-foot-tall sculpture by artist Benjamin Victor shows Hamilton holding a scroll of his first charge to the officers of the Revenue Cutter Service. The installation also includes a series of plaques that honor Hamilton's contribution to the formation of what would become the U.S. Coast Guard, and a statement from the Class of 1963.

Mike Burdian, president of the Class of '63, explained in his remarks that the plans for a class gift in honor of their 50th reunion was to raise $63,000. In the end, more than $250,000 was raised.

Rear Adm. James E. Rendon, superintendent of the academy, and retired Capt. Andrea Marcille, president of the USCGA Alumni Association, also delivered remarks.

U.S. Coast Guard Academy Cadets, from left, first-class Matthew Nagle, first-class Madelynn Widmeier, fourth-class Juniana Curtis and fourth-class Katelynn Lane, remove the shroud to unveil a statue of Coast Guard founder Alexander Hamilton, given as a gift from the academy's Class of 1963 on Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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Rand Scholet, right, president of the Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society, greets sculptor Benjamin Victor at the unveiling of Victor's sculpture of Alexander Hamilton at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, a gift of the Class of 1963, on Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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U.S. Coast Guard Academy Superintendent Rear Adm. James E. Rendon gives his remarks at the unveiling of the academy Class of 1963's gift, a statue of Coast Guard founder Alexander Hamilton, on Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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Mary Anne Hamilton, left, widow of Laurens Morgan Hamilton, a great-great-grandson of founding father Alexander Hamilton, sits with Rand Scholet, right, president of the Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society, as the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Class of 1963 unveils a statue of Alexander Hamilton on Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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Members of U.S. Coast Guard Academy Class of 1963 gather for a photo with their gift to the academy, a statue of Coast Guard founder Alexander Hamilton, on Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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Guests get a closer look at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Class of 1963's gift to the academy, a statue of Coast Guard founder Alexander Hamilton, follwing an unveiling Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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Sculptor Benjamin Victor, second from right, speaks with members of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Class of 1963 and other guests after the unveiling of his sculpture of Coast Guard founder Alexander Hamilton as a gift from the Class of '63 to the academy Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, in front of Hamilton Hall at the academy in New London, Conn. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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