Wood's Monument is an obelisk monument in honor of Colonel Eleazer Derby Wood

Eleazer D. Wood

Eleazer Derby Wood was an American Army officer in the War of 1812.Wood was born in Lunenburg, Massachusetts...

 (1783–1814), an engineer officer and early graduate of West Point

United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...

 who died during the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

 at the Siege of Fort Erie

Siege of Fort Erie

The Siege of Fort Erie was one of the last and most protracted engagements between British and American forces during the Niagara campaign of the American War of 1812...

 on 17 September 1814. Old prints of West Point show this monument located on a knoll near the flag pole. The monument was once used as a navigational aid for ships making the passage down the Hudson River.

Eleazer Wood

Eleazer D. Wood

Eleazer D. Wood

Eleazer Derby Wood was an American Army officer in the War of 1812.Wood was born in Lunenburg, Massachusetts...

 (1783 – September 17, 1814) was born in Lunenburg, Massachusetts

Lunenburg, Massachusetts

Lunenburg is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,086 at the 2010 census.For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Lunenburg, please see the article Lunenburg , Massachusetts....

. Wood was one of the earliest graduates of the U.S. Military Academy, becoming the 17th graduate of the academy in 1806. He was well known among the army officer corps as an engineer and artillery officer. He built Fort Meigs in Ohio as well as other fortifications. Fort Wood, an early 19th century star-shaped fortification

Star fort

A star fort, or trace italienne, is a fortification in the style that evolved during the age of gunpowder, when cannon came to dominate the battlefield, and was first seen in the mid-15th century in Italy....

 on Bedloe's Island (named after Isaac Bedloo), now called Liberty Island

Liberty Island

Liberty Island is a small uninhabited island in New York Harbor in the United States, best known as the location of the Statue of Liberty. Though so called since the turn of the century, the name did not become official until 1956. In 1937, by proclamation 2250, President Franklin D...

, was named in his honor, as is Wood County, Ohio

Wood County, Ohio

Wood County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 125,488. Its county seat is Bowling Green. The county was named for Captain Eleazer D. Wood, the engineer for General William Henry Harrison's army, who built Fort Meigs in the War of 1812...

.

History of the monument

At the conclusion of the War of 1812, Major General

Major general (United States)

In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...

 Jacob Brown

Jacob Brown

Jacob Jennings Brown was an American army officer in the War of 1812. His successes on the northern border during that war made him a hero. In 1821 he was appointed commanding general of the U.S. Army and held that post until his death.-Early life:Born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Jacob Jennings...

 contacted Colonel Sylvanus Thayer

Sylvanus Thayer

Colonel and Brevet Brigadier General Sylvanus Thayer also known as "the Father of West Point" was an early superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point and an early advocate of engineering education in the United States.-Biography:Thayer was born in Braintree, Massachusetts,...

, Superintendent of the Military Academy, and ordered the monument's construction at West Point at his own expense. The monument is a four-sided obelisk

Obelisk

An obelisk is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top, and is said to resemble a petrified ray of the sun-disk. A pair of obelisks usually stood in front of a pylon...

 approximately 15 feet (4.6 m) tall. Erected in 1818, it was once prominently located near the site of present day Trophy Point

Trophy Point

Trophy Point is a scenic overlook of the Hudson River Valley located at West Point, New York. It has been the subject of numerous works of art since the early 19th century. Trophy Point is the location of Battle Monument, one of the largest columns of granite in the world...

. As the academy expanded, the monument was moved to the cemetery

West Point Cemetery

West Point Cemetery is a historic cemetery on the grounds of the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. It overlooks the Hudson River, and served as a burial ground for American Revolutionary War soldiers and early West Point inhabitants long before 1817 when it was officially...

 in 1885, where it is located next to the graves of the Warner sisters, Susan

Susan Warner

Susan Bogert Warner , was an American evangelical writer of religious fiction, children's fiction, and theological works.-Biography:...

 and Anna

Anna Bartlett Warner

Anna Bartlett Warner was an American writer, the author of several books, and of poems set to music as hymns and religious songs for children...

. Its dedication in 1818 makes it the oldest monument at the academy.