To preserve the Kossuth name and tradition, streets, parks, and buildings in a number of North American communities were named after him. Plaques (often on buildings where he stayed or visited), statues, portraits, and more were dedicated to his memory — often initiated by Hungarian communities, but supported by Americans and Canadians as a whole. Some have been moved, rebuilt, or restored; others have disappeared or are awaiting restoration. A survey indicates the following inventory.

Thoroughfares

Kossuth Streets can be found in: Lafayette, IN; Bridgeport, CT; Columbus, OH; Bancroft, IA; LuVerne, IA; Whittemore, IA; Wesley, IA; Deer Park, NY; Providence, RI; Bangor, ME; Norwalk, CT.
Kossuth Avenues: St. Louis, MO; Ronkonkoma, NY (LI); Bronx, NY; Buffalo, NY.
Kossuth Place: Brooklyn, NY.
Kossuth Road: Kitchener, ONT (Canada); St. Mary’s, OH.
Kossuth Park: New Brunswick, NJ.

Towns and Jurisdictions

Kossuth town names appear in Indiana, Mississippi, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Iowa has a Kossuth County.

Plaques

Castle Clinton plaque — New York City, Battery Park, Castle Gardens. Ceded to New York City in 1823, Castle Clinton was renamed “Castle Gardens” in 1824. Until 1855 it served as a community center and theater where public figures such as Lafayette, Kossuth, and President Jackson were received. The plaque, on the wall of the castle, notes specifics of Kossuth’s NYC reception and references a painting in City Hall where Kossuth was hosted by Ambrose Kingsland (Mayor, 1851).

Pittsburgh plaque — Corner of Wood St. and 3rd Ave. (Point Park College), site of the onetime St. Charles Hotel where Kossuth stayed January 22–31, 1852. Inscription: “LOUIS KOSSUTH — Great Hungarian patriot, champion of liberty, statesman and orator, Governor of Hungary in 1849, lodged in the Hotel St. Charles on this site January 22–31, 1852 as guest of the City of Pittsburgh while on a tour of the United States.” Placed by A. Finta, 1949, Los Angeles, California — “This tablet placed by the Magyars of Western Pennsylvania.”

Trenton, NJ — City Hall. Donated by Hungarian-descent citizens in 1952, commemorating the 100th anniversary of Kossuth’s visit.

Columbus, OH — Inside City Hall, 1952. Inscription: “The spirit of our age is democracy. All for the people, and all by the people. Nothing about the people without the people — that is democracy and the ruling tendency of the spirit of our age. — Louis Kossuth, Columbus, Ohio, Joint Assembly of Ohio, February 1852.” Presented in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Kossuth’s visit by Southern Ohio’s Hungarians, July 1952. Plaque by Sándor Bodó.

Buildings

In Washington, DC, the headquarters of the Reformed Federation of America is located in the “Kossuth House,” 2001 Massachusetts Ave NW, which bears a plaque of Louis Kossuth. In Kitchener, ONT, a “Kossuth House” on Kossuth Rd. (near the airport) is an old schoolhouse now used by the Kitchener Hungarian Club.

Statues

Port Colborne, ONT — Kossuth Park, 10 L43 Lakeshore Dr. (by Kisfaludy Strobl Zsigmond). Inscription: “Kossuth Lajos 1802–1894… leader of the Hungarian independence struggle 1848–1849. This statue is dedicated to Hungarian Canadians. Unveiled as a centennial project, July 9, 1967. Donated by the World Federation of Hungarians.”

Los Angeles, CA — Exhibition Park (Alex Finta, 1954). Inscription: “Louis Kossuth 1802–1894, Hungarian patriot, visited the United States on a goodwill tour 1851–52. Received by Pres. Millard Fillmore and Daniel Webster. Addressed the United States Senate and the House of Representatives.”

St. Louis, MO — On Kossuth Avenue, west of Grand Ave., near Fairground Park (Alex Finta, 1951).

New York, NY — Riverside Drive and 113th Street (Manhattan). Sculptor: János Horvai. Inscriptions include, on the flag of the honvéd, “Velünk a szent szabadság istene,” and on the pedestal front, “Erected by a liberty loving race of Americans of Magyar origin to Louis Kossuth, the great champion of liberty.”

Brooklyn, New York City — Gravestone of Mrs. Zulavsky, née Emília Kossuth, sister of Lajos Kossuth, in Greenwood Cemetery. Inscription (in part): “Emilia Kossuth-Zulavsky — born in Hungary November 12, 1817. Died Brooklyn, NY June 29, 1860. Ye who return when Hungary is free, oh, take me along, my heart is there. By her fellow exiles who admired her in life — now mourn.”

Washington, DC — Bust of Louis Kossuth by Gabriella F. Koszorús-Varsa, in the reception hall entryway of the Embassy of Hungary. Inside the US Capitol, a bronze bust by Csaba Kúr, dedicated March 15, 1990, reads: “KOSSUTH, 1802–1894. Father of Hungarian democracy, Hungarian Statesman, Freedom Fighter, 1848–1849.”

Cleveland, OH — University Circle (András Tóth, sculptor, Debrecen 1901; poured by Gillman I., Budapest 1902). Inscription: “Kossuth 1802–1894. His life was devoted to the cause of liberty. Erected by the Magyar-American citizens Sept. 18, 1902, in commemoration of his visit to the United States 1851–1852.” Restored in 1995.