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OUTDOOR DECOR
The Lawn Jockey:
The Lawn Jockey has its roots in the tale of Jocko Graves, an African-American boy who served with General George Washington at the time he crossed the Delaware to carry out his surprise attack on British forces at Trenton, NJ.
The General thought he was too young to take along on such a dangerous attack, so left him on the Pennsylvania side to tend to the horses and keep a light on the bank for their return.
So the story goes, the boy, faithful to his post and his orders, froze to death on the river bank during the night, the lantern still in his hand.
The General was so moved by the boy’s devotion to duty he had a statue sculpted and cast of him, holding a lantern, and had it installed at his Mt. Vernon estate. He called the sculpture “The Faithful Groomsman”.
Though sightings are pretty infrequent today, the yard ornaments that portray blacks in subservient rolls have the power to gnaw insatiably at the spirit of blacks and to disgust others who are unaware of the furtive and notable roles these ”Jockos” played in the first half of the 19th century.
But, escaping slaves understood the jockey statue would guide them to the Underground Railroad and to freedom throughout the South into Canada. Green ribbons were tied onto the arms of the statue to indicate safety; red ribbons meant keep going.