Established in 1721 as a drill field, what is now Jackson Square was known for more than a century as the Place d’Armes (under the French flag) or the Plaza de Armes (when Spain owned the colony). This plaza acquired its current name in 1848, but it wasn’t until 1850 that the dusty old parade ground began to take its present shape and design. The statue of General Jackson on his rearing horse, by sculptor Clark Mills, was put in place in 1856 and is the world’s first equestrian statue with more than one hoof unsupported.