When The Society of the Sons of St. George decided to purchase its own property in 1872, a statue of St. George and the Dragon was commissioned.

Cast in bronze by Elkington & Company of Birmingham England, the statue measures 8’ in height, 4’ in width, and 12’6” in depth. The base is 6’ in height, 11’6” in width, and 6’6” in depth. It was installed on St. George’s Hall in 1877 then moved to the new St. George’s Hall at 19th and Arch Streets in 1903. Placed in storage at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 1935, and eventually donated to the City of Philadelphia, the sculpture was revived in time for the US Bicentennial of 1976. It was placed in 1975 in West Fairmount Park along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive near Black Road. The statue sits mere feet from a path where walkers and bikers can easily spot the magnificent recreation of the classic tale.

In 2021, members began efforts to beautify the area around the statute, and in June 2024, the statue received a significant visual improvements. After several prior clean-up days — including Bill and Alyson Thompson, Chuck Barber, Greg Edwards, Michael and Marita Poxon, Judith Francis, and George Tyndall — the bedding area around the statue’s base was installed. Thanks to a generous donation from Ken LeRoy of John B. Ward Arborists — who did significant trimming of the surrounding trees to the statue so it can be better seen in its park setting — we were ready to move ahead with the border enhancement. Joe Ascenzi, owner of Laurel Hill Gardens in Chestnut Hill, was contracted to construct the approximately 70 linear feet of bedding border, a Belgian Block set in concrete. Twelve New Generation Freedom boxwoods were planted, three at each of the bed’s four corners. Jamie Healy (also of Laurel Hill Gardens) was hired to water and maintain the plantings throughout the hot summer.

Liriope was planted recently to fill in between the boxwood. The low grass-like flowering plant from East and Southeast Asia helps complete the project, and our statue finally has the enhancement it deserves.

The statue, originally cast in England in 1877, was removed from St. George’s House on May 22, 1923.