About

Lasdon Park, Somers, New York

Who knew there was a Trail of Honor for those who served throughout all of the United States’ military campaigns right here in the back woods of Westchester?

Lasdon Park is on Route 35 opposite Orchard Hill Road in Somers, New York. In addition to the Trail of Honor, Lasdon is a public park with gardens and an arboretum.

When you enter the grounds keep to the left for the Trail of Honor. Going straight through the gates will lead you to the Veterans Museum which we will talk about later.

The first signage you see will be the Trail of Honor Kiosk which has a map that directs you to the memorials.

But before you get to the memorials, you are greeted by the flags of all the services including the Merchant Marine.

Not only do they have a Merchant Marine flag, but they also have a memorial to those who have service their country in this branch.

It is the first time I have ever encountered such a memorial. The steering wheel is a nice touch.

Proceeding past this steering wheel, we come to the first memorial: The Veterans Memorial Pathway where busts of soldiers from the American Revolution to Desert Storm line the way.

If you look carefully, you will notice the small stones on each of the statue’s base just below the bust. These are distributed to represent the 44 towns and villages in Westchester County.

What is noticeable about each of the bust is the hat that each one is wearing. It is like getting a historical review of military haberdashery. Notice the hat on the war of 1812 soldier and how rigid it stands at attention.

Now notice this Civil War hat is floppy. That is because the inner support never arrived from Europe for the soldiers to insert them into their hats.

A walk up a slight incline brings us to the for Vietnam Veterans. Here we see a nurses’ statue and a black obelisk. Surrounding the black obelisk are 5,900 paving stones. Each stone represents 10 combat deaths in Vietnam.

Etched around are the countries: Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. A reminder that we occasionally went into country X. A close reading of the names on the four sides revealed the name of my high school classmate R.C. Murray.

Off to the right there is the memorial for the nurses who served in Vietnam.

Their statue may be even more emotional than the one in Washington D.C. First you see a soldier carrying his wounded buddy desperate for help.

The most moving and poignant part of the grouping is the expression on the face of the nurse who is waiting in anticipation of rendering aid. 

Around a different path there is a memorial to the service men from the Korean Conflict (remember war was never declared.) On one side are the names of the fallen service men from the Korean War.

Along with that black obelisk is a stone marker for that almost forgotten war in Korea remining us that “Freedom is not Free.”

  I could not leave without pausing at the memorial to the Gold Star Mothers of Westchester. Standing in silence is the only way to pay tribute to their sacrifices.

Now, acting like a tour guide with a raise folded umbrella, I circle back to the main entrance to the Vietnam Museum here at Ladson Park. Inside the museum there is a rotating display of artifacts from the wars and a viewing room where you can watch personal accounts of in-country conflicts.

Currently the staff is planning an exhibition on Women in the Military. I was given a sneak preview of the women’s uniforms and different occupations women have served in during a century of wars. When it open is a few weeks, I will be back for a closer inspection. Remember you all are invited too.

So, today we traveled the trail of Honor in Lasdon Park. I hope you get a chance to walk it one day yourself.