In the background in the town square is a memorial to Casimir Pulaski (1745-1779), Polish nobleman, soldier, and military commander who has been called the “father of the American cavalry.”
Driven into exile after a failed uprising against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, he came to North America to help in the American Revolutionary War, following a recommendation by Benjamin Franklin. He distinguished himself throughout the revolution, most notably when he saved the life of George Washington.
Pulaski became a general in the Continental Army, and he created the Pulaski Cavalry Legion, reforming the American cavalry as a whole. He was killed at the Battle of Savannah, and is remembered as a hero who fought for independence and freedom in Poland and the US.
Numerous places and events are named in his honour, and he is one of only eight people to be awarded honorary United States citizenship. There is a very fine statue in his honour in Hartford, and the memorial in Stars Hollow may be an attempt to provide a fictional counterpart.
The Annotated Gilmore Girls 