The statue of John Barry commemorates the "Father of the United States Navy", Commodore John Barry (1745-1806). Barry was an Irish-born sailor who joined the American colonists in fighting for independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Barry became the first commission by the Second Continental Congress. He captained several ships during the American Revolutionary War, and not only fought in the Continental Navy, but also the Continental Army. He was the first American to capture an enemy ship and was promoted to commodore by President George Washington in 1794. Barry's last ship, the United States, fought in the Quasi-War. He retired in 1801, but remained head of the United States Navy until his death in 1806.

Plans to erect a memorial to Barry began in 1902. With assistance from members of Congress, a bill to install the memorial and the allocation of $50,000 to pay for it occurred in 1906. The National Commodore John Barry Statue Commission included government officials, veterans, and many Irish American groups. The person who won the commission to create the sculpture was John J. Boyle. Work on the sculpture and pedestal took place from 1911 to 1913.

A dedication ceremony for the memorial took place in 1914, which included a large parade through Washington, D.C. Over 10,000 people, including President Woodrow Wilson, members of Congress, military leaders, and Supreme Court justices, attended the ceremony. The unveiling of the statue was done by one of Barry's descendants. The bronze statue of Barry is located on the western edge of Franklin Square in downtown Washington, D.C. Barry is portrayed wearing a military uniform while his right hand is holding scrolls and resting on a sword. The female allegorical statue on the front of the pedestal represents Victory. She is holding a laurel wreath as an eagle rests below her right arm.

The memorial is one of fourteen American Revolution Statuary listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites in 1978 and 1979, respectively. The memorial is also a contributing property to the L'Enfant Plan, listed on the NRHP in 1997.

John Barry was born 1745 in Ireland, and later worked as a cabin boy before immigrating to the United States at age 15. Fifteen years later, Barry joined citizens from the Thirteen Colonies, who were attempting to fight for their independence in the American Revolutionary War. He joined the Continental Navy and was named captain of the USS Lexington in December 1775, the first commission by the Second Continental Congress. While commanding the ship, he became the first American to capture a Royal Navy ship.

Barry commanded the Lexington for most of 1776. Not only did Barry serve in the Continental Navy, he served in the Continental Army during the winter of 1776-1777, successfully fighting the enemy at the Battle of Trenton and Battle of Princeton. In 1777, he commanded the USS Delaware, and was responsible for leading successful attacks on the Royal Navy. In 1778, he commanded the USS Raleigh, which ran aground and was repaired for use by British forces. In 1781, Barry commanded the USS Alliance during a successful battle with the Royal Navy. He was seriously injured in the process, but it was the final naval battle of the war.

After the war ended and American had won its freedom, President George Washington issued Barry Commission Number 1. He was referred to as commodore from that point. His final ship was the United States which he captained during the Quasi-War with France. He retired after that war, but retained his role as head of the United States Navy until his death in 1806. Barry's contribution to American wars, including being the first American commissioned naval officer, earned him praise and admiration. He is referred to as the "Father of the United States Navy".

In early 1902, a social club in Washington, D.C., voted unanimously for a memorial to be placed in the city. Michael Francis O'Donoghue, husband of Marian Longfellow O'Donoghue, was an Irish American who was tasked with getting permission from Congress for the memorial. Representative Michael E. Driscoll and Senator Thomas Kearns agreed to introduce a bill in Congress that would result in the erection of the memorial. The first bill was written by O'Donoghue and was introduced in the House of Representatives and the Senate. With assistance from Senator Henry C. Hansbrough, the bill passed the Senate with an appropriation of $25,000 for the memorial to be built. Senator George P. Wetmore later increased the funding to $50,000.

Later that year, the National Commodore John Barry Statue Commission was formed, which included members of Congress and the public. The plan for a memorial was supported by Irish organizations including the Ancient Order of Hibernians, as well as the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Sons of the American Revolution. At the same time, there were calls for the funding of a memorial to John Paul Jones. The bill was modified to include approval of both memorials, allocating $50,000 for each one. It would take until June 8, 1906, for both chambers to pass the bill. A competition between 25 Irish American artists took place in 1908 to find a sculptor for the memorial.

After the winning design was rejected, and the top two other finalists were eliminated, the person chosen to sculpt the statue was Irish-American John Boyle, a choice hailed by Irish groups. After the design was approved in 1911, the committee in charge of the memorial chose Franklin Square as the place where the memorial would be installed. After numerous ideas were suggested for its location in the park, it was decided the memorial would stand in the center of the western edge of the park. One person who supported its location was landscape architect George Burnap from the United States Army Corps of Engineers who lamented the fact "In America, we have the horrid habit of placing an equestrian statue to some war hero or other in the exact centre [sic] of every park."

Final approval of the memorial's design occurred in 1911 and a contract was signed with Boyle in November of that year. During the next two years, work began on the sculpture and pedestal. The model was completed in 1911 and the casting in 1913. In addition to Boyle, Edward Pearce Casey was selected to be the memorial's architect, Irving W. Payne and Burnap to be the landscape architects, and Roman Bronze Works to be the founder. Meanwhile, work on the John Paul Jones Memorial was completed and the dedication took place in 1912.

In June 1913, a report to the Department of War indicated the model of the statue would soon be completed, and that casting it in bronze would take several months. There was also a request made for the federal government to allocate $2,500 for the memorial dedication ceremony. In December 1913, the memorial's foundation, base, and a surrounding plaza were completed. That same month Irish American groups decided the dedication should be moved to the following year, mostly because it would allow them to properly prepare for the ceremony.