Sculptor J. Massey Rhind was commissioned to do the work, funded by the bequest of Amos H. Van Horn (1840–1908), owner of one of the largest furniture stores in Newark.

[3] Rhind's proposal was for a distinctive equestrian statue, showing General Washington saying farewell to the troops and standing beside, rather than mounted on, his horse, which helped secure the commission.

[2][7] President William H. Taft was scheduled to deliver an address at the dedication, but then had to attend the funeral of vice-president James S. Sherman, who had died three days earlier, on October 30.

[8] The bronze sculpture depicts General Washington saying his farewell address to the troops of the Continental Army at Rocky Hill, New Jersey, on November 2, 1783.

[4][5] After its dedication in 1912, brewery mogul Christian William Feigenspan commissioned Rhind for a copy of the equestrian statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni in Venice.