As an author, I subscribe to many publications and newsletters that pertain to the Civil War in order to conduct research for my books. I came across one article which I thought was distressing. It seems the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee offered a theology workshop to its clergy titled “Confronting Confederate Monuments: Preaching, Liturgy, and Leadership for Change.” I have to wonder just what was taught in this workshop, especially with a title like “confronting Confederate monuments.” Really? Since when is a Confederate monument confrontational? Anyway, the article went on to say that the workshop was for three days and two nights, and was designed to equip clergy with tools for confronting Confederate monuments in their churches and communities. The cost was only $150!
I find this appalling, to say the least. What are they teaching our kids, not to mention our pastors? Bizarre! Let me set the record straight – monuments are not racist, they do not represent or depict racism, and anyone who believes otherwise is, in my opinion, a racist. Monuments were erected all over the country after the war to honor heroes, and those who defended their homelands with their lives. It is written in our Constitution that any state has the right to secede, so Confederates were not traitors by any means, but patriots in their own right. I hate to say it, but I’m just waiting for the next wave of destruction to sweep across the nation in the form of monument desecration. I really hope that doesn’t happen.
I would like to share an excerpt that was printed in the June 1906 edition of the Confederate Veteran. I found it to be an interesting take on Confederate monuments, and I hope you will too. Thank you, Teresa Roane, for this excerpt.
From General Stephen D. Lee’s speech April 1906
There are three things peculiarly left for our concern. One of these is the erection of public monuments to our Confederate dead; not only to our leaders, but, above all, to those private soldiers who made our leaders immortal. We must not overtask posterity by expecting those who come after us to build monuments to heroes whom their own generation were unwilling to commemorate. The South has reached a position of material prosperity which justifies both State and private beneficence to honor the faithful dead.
In all human lot there has nothing better been found for man than to die for his country. If there be any virtue, if there be any praise, this fate is to be preferred above all others. We feel it is well with those who have thus fulfilled the highest of all trusts, the duty of a citizen to his native land; and whatever may have been their private faults, their public service on the field of battle has rightly given them a place with the immortals. Theirs was the martyr’s devotion without the martyr’s hope. Their generation and their country imposed upon them this high service. They fulfilled it without flinching. They felt that the issue of the battle was with God; the issue of their duty was with themselves….
I urge monuments to the Confederate soldier first for the sake of the dead, but most for the sake of the living, that in this busy industrial age these stones to the Confederate soldier may stand like great interrogation marks to the soul of each beholder.
“Any society which suppresses the heritage of its conquered minorities, prevents their history or denies them their symbols, has sown the seeds of their own destruction.”
Sir William Wallace, 1281 A.D.
There has been an assault going on for quite some time on Confederate monuments and markers. The most alarming is what’s taking place in Virginia. Governor Ralph Northam and Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney have taken it upon themselves to aggressively go after and do away with any reminder of the Confederacy, even though Richmond was the capital of the Confederate States of America for nearly all of the Civil War. I find this alarming because, even though the political climate has changed over the past century and a half, history should never be erased. It stands as a reminder to what happened in the past, and whether interpreted as good or bad, it is still a valuable part of American history. Germany intentionally has left what remains of old stalags as reminders of the terrible history it experienced under Nazism. I think America should do the same.
This brings to mind the recent desecration of Monument Avenue in Richmond. What used to be a beautiful area in the heart of the city, with its magnificent monuments, has utterly been destroyed. I visited Richmond when I attended the UDC Convention back in (I believe) 2011, and I thought the avenue was absolutely stunning. Unfortunately, last year, Black Lives Matter was given free rein to desecrate the monuments, as well as buildings around them, by any and all means possible. They covered the monument bases with graffiti and were even allowed to chisel away at some of them. As far as I know, no arrests were ever made. What an atrocity, and shameful for the city of Richmond. I, for one, will never visit Richmond again.
It’s my understanding that Monument Avenue was on the National Historic Sites Register, and because of that, it should have been protected. But apparently not, since all of the magnificent statues have been taken down. The last one to be removed was that of General Robert E. Lee. The statue was even cut in half. They are considering giving the Robert E. Lee monument to the Black History Museum, which has said that they will melt the statue down and make it into something else. I can only imagine what that might be.
The Richmond City Council recently allocated $1.3 million to build a national slavery museum.
“The response can’t be to build back up Monument Avenue,” Hones said. “It must be to build back the antithesis of what was torn down. And the best thing to do is to become serious as a council and administration to tell the true story … of what’s in place in Virginia.”
The city of Richmond has received numerous offers for the monuments, which are being stored in a sewage facility. The matter will be decided on January 18, 2022.
The following is a list of groups who wish to obtain the monuments: 1. Liberty Hall Fife & Drums 2. Ratcliffe Foundation/Ellenbrook 3. Shenandoah Valley Battlefield Foundation 4. VA Division – Sons of Confederate Veterans 5. Valentine Museum 6. United States of America Naval History & Heritage Command 7. Fontaine/Maury Society 8. JEB Stuart Birthplace Preservation Trust 9. CSA II: The New Confederate States of America Inc. – Monument Establishment & Preservation Fund 10. Belmead on the James 11. Shannon Pritchard/Hickory Hill/Wickham Family 12. Sumter County SC Sons of Confederate Veterans 13. LAXArt Museum 14. Spotsylvania Historical Association 15. DARNstudio 16 Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation 17. Preserve America’s Battlefields 18. Private individual 1 – David Hinton 19. Private individual 2 – Michael Boccicchio 20. Private individual 3 – Olivia Tautkus 21. Private individual 4 – James Cochrane, Jr. 22. Private individual 5 – Austin Wylam 23. Liberty Hall Plantation
There is no submission from the Black History Museum, but it seems that they will receive legal ownership of most of the monuments and their bases. It also seems that the Valentine Museum will “partner” with the Black History Museum in gaining ownership of the monuments. However, the Valentine Museum has only submitted a request for the Valentine sculptured statue of Jefferson Davis.
I subscribe to Civil War Talk, and wanted to share some entries.
From Viper 21:
“City and state officials have reached an agreement to transfer ownership of the statue and pedestal of Gen. Robert E. Lee to the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia, which has also agreed to take possession of all the other Confederate memorials removed from Richmond since last year.
“Under this arrangement, Richmond’s Black History Museum would work in partnership with the Valentine museum — which has chronicled the city’s history for more than a century — and local community members to determine the fates of the stone and bronze symbols of the Confederacy.
“The deal requires approval by Richmond’s City Council. Mayor Levar Stoney — who hammered out some of the details with Gov. Ralph Northam (D) — said in a written statement that the arrangement enables the community to take a deliberate approach in reckoning with such divisive symbols.
“‘Entrusting the future of these monuments and pedestals to two of our most respected institutions is the right thing to do,’ Stoney said in the statement, obtained by The Washington Post … ‘They will take the time that is necessary to properly engage the public and ensure the thoughtful disposition of these artifacts.’”
Sgt. Cycom from L.A. summed it up: “The people that are loudest in calling for ‘unity’ and ‘inclusion’ are almost always projecting their own intolerance and inability to compromise. I hope these monuments remain so that I can take my family to see them in a few years. I pray history is preserved and not destroyed. Giving these monuments to people who will continue to desecrate them is disgusting, infuriating and despicable.”
As a side note, the majority of Richmond residents voted for the monuments to remain intact on Monument Avenue.
I was under the illusion that Confederate monuments were essentially the only statues under attack in the country right now. However, this article gives more insight about which monuments are really being targeted.
At least 183 monuments, memorials, statues, and major historical markers have been defaced or pulled down since protests began in May. While Confederate monuments have received the lion’s share of media coverage, they actually form a minority of the statues targeted.
By far the most popular target was Christopher Columbus, with 33 statues in total having been defaced and pulled down.
The next most popular targets were Robert E. Lee (9), Serra (8), and Thomas Jefferson (4).
The vast majority of the vandals were never charged, with 177 out of 183 instances having no arrests.
Most monuments torn down were not by protesters, but by city officials after pressure or threats from protesters.
By far the most common route for monuments being destroyed was for protesters to damage it, then the city quickly removing it as a “public safety” hazard, not to be returned.
For a majority of the statues removed, the fate of the artwork is currently unknown, while a minority have been moved to cemeteries and museums. Here is the list as best as we can assemble it:
Monument to Marcus Daly, Butte, MT Cemetery Monument to Confederate Soldiers, Savannah, GA Memorial to Fallen Kansas City Police Officers, Kansas City, MO Monument to Christopher Columbus, Chicago, IL Statue of Jesus Christ, Miami, FL Statue of Robert E. Lee, Antietam, MD Union Veterans Monument, Saratoga, NY Alexander Andreyevich Baranov Statue, Sitka, AK Monument to Confederate Soldiers, Amarillo, TX Confederate Statue, Oxford, MS Numerous Religious Statues, Punta Gorda, FL Statue of Ronald Reagan, Dixon, CA Statue of Hiawatha, LaCrosse, WI Statue of Thomas Ruffin, Raleigh, NC Sampson County Confederate Monument, Clinton, NC Statue of the Virgin Mary, Boston, MA 9-11 Memorial, Washingtonville, NY Statue of Sophie B. Wright, New Orleans, LA Statue of Christopher Columbus, Buffalo, NY John McDonough Bust, New Orleans, LA Bust of Colonel Charles Didier Dreux, New Orleans, LA Joseph Bryan Statue, Richmond, VA Fitzhugh Lee Cross, Richmond, VA Historical Marker of David Dodd’s Execution, Little Rock, AR Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Statue, Richmond, VA Courthouse Confederate Statue, Wadesboro, NC Statue of Christopher Columbus, Trenton, NJ Columbus’ Last Appeal to Queen Isabella, Sacramento, CA Statue of JEB Stuart, Richmond VA Statue of Andrew Jackson, Jackson, MS Henry County Confederate Monument, Statue of Christopher Columbus, Bridgeport, CT Statue of Christopher Columbus, Columbus, WI Statue of John Mason, Windsor, CT Statue of Frederick Douglass, Rochester, NY Monument to Judah Benjamin, Sarasota, FL Confederate Mass Grave Monument, Greensboro, NC Three Mississippi Confederate Monuments, MS Statue of Christopher Columbus, Waterbury, CT Statue of Christopher Columbus, Baltimore, MA San Junipero Serra Statue, Sacramento, CA Statue of the Virgin Mary, Gary, IN Statue of Private Benjamin Welch Owens, Hampden, PA Jenkins Monument, Hampden, PA United Confederate Veterans Memorial, Seattle, WA Civil War Historical Markers and Statues, McConnellsburg, PA Mt. Zion Methodist Confederate Statue, Charlotte, NC Matthew Fountain Maury Monument, Richmond, VA Christopher Columbus Statue, Philadelphia, PA Statue of George Whitefield, Philadelphia, PA Elk (wildlife statue), Portland, OR Statue of Christopher Columbus, Austin, TX Statue of Christopher Columbus, Columbus, OH Robert E. Lee Memorial, Roanoke, VA Stonewall Jackson Monument, Richmond, VA Emancipation Memorial, Boston, MA San Junipero Serra Statue, San Gabriel, CA Confederate Cemetery Memorial, Fayetteville, NC Confederate Monument, Orangeburg, SC Rockdale County Confederate Monument, Conyers, GA Nash County Confederate Monument, Rocky Mount, NC 3 Cemetery Statues, Frederick, MD Lee Square Confederate Monument, Pensacola, Florida Our Confederate Soldiers, Beaumont, TX Statue of Columbus, Hartford, CT Kanawha Riflemen Memorial, Charleston, WV To Our Confederate Dead, Louisburg, NC Statue of Christopher Columbus, Atlantic City, NJ Monument to Fallen Confederate Soldiers, Fayetteville, AR Ten Commandments (several locations) Statue of Christopher Columbus Loudoun County Confederate Monument, Leesburg, VA Soldiers Monument (Union), Santa Fe, NM Pioneer Fountain, Denver, CO Denton Confederate Soldier Monument, TX Statue of Christopher Columbus, Norwalk, CT Monument to Confederate Veterans and Statue of George Wallace, Wilmington, NC Statue of Christopher Columbus, Providence, RI Statue of Christopher Columbus, Newark, NJ Civil War Monument (Union), Denver, CO Statue of Christopher Columbus, Philadelphia, PA Statue of Christopher Columbus, New Haven, CT Confederate War Memorial, Dallas, TX Statue of Thomas Jefferson, Long Island, NY Bust of Washington, Washington DC ‘Forward’ Statue (feminism monument), Madison, WI John C. Calhoun Monument, Charleston, SC American Receiving the Gift of Nations, Camden, NJ “Obscured” at the Rutgers College Statue of Juan Junipero Serra, Carmel, CA Statue of Juan Junipero Serra, San Louis Opiso Missionary, CA ‘To Our Confederate Dead’ Monument, Louisburg NC Confederate Memorial Obelisk, St. Augustine, FL Pitt County Confederate Soldiers Monument, Greenville, NC Statue of Henry Lawson Wyatt, Monument to North Carolina Women of the Confederacy, Raleigh NC Statue of Juan Junipero Serra, Los Angeles, CA Pine Bluff Confederate Monument, Pine Bluff, AR Gloria Victis, Salisbury, NC North Carolina State Confederate Monument, Raleigh, NC Statue of Albert Pike, Washington DC Statue of Francis Scott Key, San Francisco, CA Bust of Ulysses S. Grant, San Francisco, CA Statue of Juan Junipero Serra, San Francisco, CA Statue of Christopher Columbus, Houston, TX Statue of Christopher Columbus, Columbus OH Statue of George Preston Marshall (National Football League), Washington, DC Statue of Juan Junipero Serra, Ventura, CA Memorial to Company A, Capital Guards, Little Rock, AR Statue of George Washington, Portland, OR DeKalb County Confederate Monument, Decatur, GA Kit Carson Obelisk, Santa Fe, NM Captain William Clark Monument, Portland, OR Statue of Diego de Vargas, Santa Fe, NM Gravestone of Unknown Confederate Soldiers, Silver Spring, MD Spirit of the Confederacy, Houston, TX Jefferson Davis Memorial, Brownsville, TX Vance Monument, Asheville, NC Norfolk Confederate Monument, Norfolk, VA Statue of University of Nevada at Las Vegas mascot, Statue of Juan de Onate, Albuquerque, NM Statue of Christopher Columbus, Columbus, OH Statue of Christopher Columbus, St. Louis, MS Statue of Josephus Daniels, Raleigh, NC Statue of John Sutter, Sacramento, NC Confederate Mass Grave Marker, Clarksville, TN Equestrian Statue of Juan de Onate, Alcade, NM Bust of Christopher Columbus, Detroit, MI Statue of Thomas Jefferson, Portland, OR The Pioneer, Eugene, OR The Pioneer Mother, Eugene, OR Bust of John McDonough, New Orleans, LA Christopher Columbus Monument, West Orange, NJ Stand Waitie Monument, Tahlequah, OK Stand Waitie Fountain, Tahlequah, OK Delaware Law Enforcement Memorial, Dover, DE Equestrian Statue of Caesar Rodney, Wilmington, DE Statue of Christopher Columbus, Columbia, SC Statue of Christopher Columbus, Wilmington, Statue of Phillip Schuyler, Albany, NY Richmond Police Memorial, Richmond, VA Statue of Christopher Columbus, New London, CT Statue of Christopher Columbus, Camden, NJ Statue of Christopher Columbus, Boston, MA Gadsden Confederate Memorial Statue of Jerry Richardson (National Football League), Charlotte NC Statue of Christopher Columbus, Minneapolis, MN Statue of Jefferson Davis, Richmond, VA Confederate Monument, Jacksonville, FL Monument to the Women of the Southland, Jacksonville, FL Cemetery Grandstand for Confederate Soldiers, Eight Historical Markers, 23 Informational Signs, and 53 Tree Signs, Jacksonville, FL Statue of Christopher Columbus, Richmond, VA Confederate Monument, Portsmouth, VA Statue of Sam Davis, Nashville, TN Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument, Indianapolis, IN Statue of John Breckinridge Castleman, Louisville, KY Frank Rizzo Mural, Philadelphia, PA University of Kentucky Mural, Lexington, KY Statue of Orville Hubbard, Dearborn, MI Robert E. Lee Memorial, Roanake, VA Statue of Raphael Semmes, Mobile, AL Sacred Heart Statue, Wasco, CA Statues of Jesus Christ (numerous Catholic Ccurches), Texas Ranger, Dallas, TX Athens Confederate Monument, Athens, GA Statue of Thomas Jefferson, Birmingham, AL Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument, Birmingham, AL Robert E. Lee Bust, Fort Myers, FL Statue of Robert E .Lee, Montgomery, AL Bentonville Confederate Monument, Bentonville, AR Statue of Charles Linn, Birmingham, AL Statue of Edward Carmack, Nashville, TN
(Article courtesy of Dixie Heritage Newsletter, July 31, 2020 ed.)
If these two articles are any indication, most Americans are against removing monuments and historical artifacts. And yet, it still keeps happening against the majority’s wishes. Why is this happening? Nikki Haley recently remarked how the Confederate monuments and the Southern Cross were symbols of heritage and history until some nimrod, who will remain un-named as to not give him the notoriety he so desperately craves, came along and committed an unfathomable atrocity.
NORTH CAROLINA DESTROYS ANOTHER MONUMENT
A large crowd gathered Wednesday to watch as the 27-foot-high 112-year-old Confederate statue outside the historic Chatham County courthouse was taken down and dismantles by workers despite a State law protecting it.
The pieces were then taken away with the help of a crane. The cost to the taxpayers was at least $44,000.
A RECENT POLL SHOWS
A strong majority of North Carolina residents say Confederate statues and monuments should remain in place, according to a statewide survey released Wednesday morning.
The Elon University Poll found that 65% of respondents think Confederate monuments should remain on public, government-owned property, while only 35% think they should be removed.
A quarter of those surveyed said removing monuments helps race relations in the state, 36% said it hurts race relations and 40% said the removal doesn’t make a difference
(Articles courtesy of Dixie Heritage Newsletter, November. 22, 2019 ed.)
Teresa Roane and I have taken up a crusade to defend Confederate monuments. She is more of an activist, and I am a writer, but we both feel the same passion about saving our history. Ms. Roane previously worked at the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond. She sees firsthand how the history of Richmond in relation to the Civil War has fallen under attack for the past few years.
Yesterday, she posted on Facebook:
“This is a sad day in Virginia. The fight to preserve Confederate heritage begins. I have not forgotten that one Richmond City Council member said that they hoped that the Virginia General Assembly would come under Democratic control. Why? Because then they could petition to eliminate Monument Avenue.
“Confederate memorials have existed for decades. An organization with a 5 million dollar endowment created a buzz phrase in 2017 and anyone who did not have a lick of sense spread that phrase all over this country. It created racial division and brought out such hatred. It also proved that ignorance about Confederate history reigns.
“Here is my question to the people who sat quietly on the sidelines. What are you going to do now? I have met so many people who said that they didn’t want the Confederate memorials removed. Will you stand up now? Will you let the politicians dictate history?
“We are in one heck of a fight……”
I cannot comprehend why this tragedy keeps escalating, although I understand why it occurred in the first place. If my ancestors were under attack, I’d be all in arms. However, my relatives came over from Ireland and Germany after the War Between the States ended. Still, I can’t believe how disrespectful it is that the great Commonwealth of Virginia has decided to disregard its heritage, along with so many other Southern states. Contorting everything related to the Confederacy by claiming it to be racist/Jim Crow is inaccurate, offensive, distasteful, and wrong. Keep distorting our historic remembrances by destroying and hiding them, and pretty soon, our history will all be gone. Erase our history, and after a while, history will be repeated because we will forget.
Here’s another jab against American heritage. It’s amazing how the past is being twisted into inaccurate, untrue current views.
H.R.4179 – NO FEDERAL FUNDING FOR CONFEDERATE SYMBOLS ACT
116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION
H. R. 4179
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 9, 2019
Mr. Espaillat (for himself, Mr. Evans, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms. Velázquez, Ms. Adams, Mr. Quigley, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Khanna, Ms. Jackson Lee, and Mr. Gallego) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL To prohibit the use of Federal funds for Confederate symbols, and for other purposes.
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the No Federal Funding for Confederate Symbols Act.
2. Findings
The Congress finds the following:
(1) The Confederate battle flag is one of the most controversial symbols from U.S. history, signifying a representation of racism, slavery, and the oppression of African Americans.
(2) The Confederate flag and the erection of Confederate monuments were used as symbols to resist efforts to dismantle Jim Crow segregation, and have become pillars of Ku Klux Klan rallies.
(3) There are at least 1,503 symbols of the Confederacy in public spaces, including 109 public schools named after prominent Confederates, many with large African-American student populations.
(4) There are more than 700 Confederate monuments and statues on public property throughout the country, the vast majority in the South. These include 96 monuments in Virginia, 90 in Georgia, and 90 in North Carolina.
(5) Ten major U.S. military installations are named in honor of Confederate military leaders. These include Fort Rucker (Gen. Edmund Rucker) in Alabama; Fort Benning (Brig. Gen. Henry L. Benning) and Fort Gordon (Maj. Gen. John Brown Gordon) in Georgia; Camp Beauregard (Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard) and Fort Polk (Gen. Leonidas Polk) in Louisiana; Fort Bragg (Gen. Braxton Bragg) in North Carolina; Fort Hood (Gen. John Bell Hood) in Texas; and Fort A.P. Hill (Gen. A.P. Hill), Fort Lee (Gen. Robert E. Lee), and Fort Pickett (Gen. George Pickett) in Virginia.
3. Federal funds restriction
(a) In general
Except as provided in subsection (c), no Federal funds may be used for the creation, maintenance, or display, as applicable, of any Confederate symbol on Federal public land, including any highway, park, subway, Federal building, military installation, street, or other Federal property.
(b) Confederate symbol defined
The term Confederate symbol includes the following:
(1) A Confederate battle flag.
(2) Any symbol or other signage that honors the Confederacy.
(3) Any monument or statue that honors a Confederate leader or soldier or the Confederate States of America.
(c) Exceptions
(d) Subsection( a) does not apply—
if the use of such funds is necessary to allow for removal of the Confederate symbol to address public safety; or
(2) in the case of a Confederate symbol created, maintained, or displayed in a museum or educational exhibit, with such designation as the Secretary determines appropriate:
(1) Fort Rucker, Alabama.
(2) Fort Benning, Georgia.
(3) Fort Gordon, Georgia.
(4) Camp Beauregard, Louisiana. (5) Fort Polk, Louisiana.
(6) Fort Bragg, North Carolina. (7) Fort Hood, Texas.
(8) Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia.
(9) Fort Lee, Virginia.
(10) Fort Pickett, Virginia. (b) References
Any reference in any law, regulation, map, document, paper, or other record of the United States to a military installation referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be a reference to such installation as redesignated under such subsection.
(Article courtesy of the Southern Comfort, Samuel A. Hughey camp 1452, Sons of Confederate Veterans, Vol. 43, Issue No. 11, November 2019 ed.)
But who does it benefit, really? I mean, seriously, eradicating Confederate statues that have been in place for over 100 years is suddenly the “in” thing to do. I feel bad for all the descendants who see their ancestors’ monuments being taken down because the statues suddenly offend a few. And yet, the stupid keep taking them down, regardless of taking into consideration what has happened in other countries when they did this same exact thing. Stupid is as stupid does, I guess.
PROBABLY NEVER COMING BACK
Now that the Tennessee Supreme Court has avoided its Constitutional duty, the nonprofit that “owns” the Confederate monuments removed from Memphis’ parks, Memphis Greenspace, will be able to act with impunity.
While they’re not sure, we suspect they are trying to sell the statues … Whoever they sell to, will no doubt have to promise that they will never be returned to Shelby County.
“Whomever takes the monuments, our restriction would be that the monuments can never cross Shelby County lines ever again and come back into this community, and this restriction would have to travel with the monuments,” Van Turner with Memphis Greenspace said.
Memphis Greenspace still has to finalize a lawsuit in local court with the surviving family of Forrest, whose remains are still at Health Sciences Park. “We will respect the wishes of the current family members,” Turner said. “All of that will have to be worked out in the local lawsuit pending in chancery court, and I think we’re up for it.”
(Article courtesy of Dixie Heritage Newsletter, November 5, 2019 ed.)
It’s a shame how our culture has bred so many who think it’s okay to vandalize grave sites because of their political views. I see too frequently where headstones have been broken, statues have been overturned, and monuments have been painted with graffiti. Why have we lost so much respect for the dead?
In my last blog, I talked about the undead, and brought up Frankenstein as an example. Gruesome as it seems, graves were commonly robbed back in the day. Not only were the grave robbers after jewelry and valuables, but some were after body parts!
Here is an excerpt describing such horrific deeds from my novel, A Rebel Among Us. Watch for its re-release, complete with a new book cover, coming soon.
Have a happy, and safe, Halloween!
Hershel awoke near sunset. “Huntsville, go fetch me a pencil and paper.”
David did as he asked, returning shortly with the requested items.
“You write this down,” he said, pointing a wilting finger at him.
David knelt beside him.
The old man continued. “You write to my wife, and tell her I loved her dearly, and tell her I miss her, but I’m fixin’ to go to a better place.”
“Harrison, there ain’t no need to …”
“Now don’t you be tellin’ me there ain’t a need!” he exclaimed.
David drew back, startled by the sudden, unexpected outburst.
“Sorry,” he apologized softly. “Tell her I long to see her and the young’uns once again, but since that’s impossible, tell her that my final thoughts were of them.”
David nodded.
“You go now, Huntsville. Go write that. Savvy? And send it to her in Tupelo. Can you do that?”
“Yessir,” David replied compassionately. He gazed down at the sickly old man momentarily before stepping out of the tent. Overcome with sorrow, he made his way back to the barracks.
The first weekend of February brought a horrendous blizzard,which dumped nearly two feet of snow. The town of Elmira shut down, and the trains ceased to run, as the thermometer plunged into the single digits. When the storm finally passed, David struggled to make his way across Foster’s Pond to check on his bunkmate. Entering the tent, he saw that two of the cots were empty. The sick man lying there alone looked up at him.
“Where’s the feller who was occupyin’ this cot?” David asked him.
The man seemed too weak to respond, but finally uttered, “Dead house.”
Stunned, David quickly walked to the morgue, and entered to see several attendees place frozen bodies into pine coffins. The cadavers’ bones cracked as they were being forced into their eternal chambers. He grimaced, meandering down an aisle until he unwittingly found a coffin with a wooden marker tied to the top of it that read:
Ltn Hershel P Harrison
42nd Mississippi
Died 2-8-1865
Standing over the pine box, he stared down at the chiseled lettering. A cart lumbered up, coming to a halt outside the morgue. With a heavy sigh, he departed the cold charnel, barely noticing other inmates who were loading the coffins onto the back of the wagon before transporting them to Woodlawn Cemetery.
One of the attendants noticed him, and said, “No need to fret. John Jones will tend to them proper.”
“Who’s John Jones?” he asked.
“He’s the ex-slave whose markin’ every grave. Doin’ a right thorough job of it, too.”
David watched for a moment, still tying to comprehend that Hershel was truly gone. He slowly shuffled through the deep snow, and dismally wondered if he might soon end up the same way. Suddenly, he remembered what one of the Tarheels had told him about grave robbers. According to Sherwood Richardson, the loathsome ghouls unearthed buried cadavers, and sold them to area doctors so that they could conduct experiments on them. He hoped that such a fate wouldn’t befall Hershel’s body.
Bless Mississippi for standing true to her flag and protecting her Confederate statues. I only wish other Southern states would hold as true to their honorable history as the Magnolia State. The destruction/desecration of Confederate monuments is alarming. How weird would it be if, sometime in the future, only statues of Union soldiers existed? What about the other half of the story?
MISSISSIPPI STATE MONUMENT TO BE RE–DEDICATED FOLLOWING SUCCESSFUL RESTORATION
Monument was originally dedicated in 1909
Date: October 16, 2019 Contact: Scott Babinowich, NPS, (601) 642-6881 Contact: Bess Averett, Director of Friends of Vicksburg NMP, (601) 831-6896
On November 11, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., Vicksburg National Military Park, the State of Mississippi, and the Friends of Vicksburg National Military Park and Campaign will re- dedicate the Mississippi State Monument within Vicksburg National Military Park.
Earlier this year, the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center completed an extensive restoration and repair project that included masonry repairs, testing of the monument’s lightning suppression system, and a thorough cleaning. Funds for the $75,000 project were donated by the State of Mississippi and championed by the Friends of Vicksburg National Military Park and Campaign.
A brief ceremony will take place at the Mississippi State Monument, along Confederate Avenue within Vicksburg National Military Park, and feature several speakers who were involved in the project. More details will be announced closer to the event.
The Mississippi State Monument was dedicated on November 12, 1909 and honors the sacrifice of Mississippi’s 32 infantry units, 17 artillery units, and 37 cavalry units which served in the 1863 Vicksburg Campaign of the Civil War. The monument was designed by R.H. Hunt of Chattanooga, TN and constructed at a of cost $32,000.
The event is free and open to the public.
(Article courtesy of The Jeff Davis Legion, Official Publication of the Mississippi Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans, October 2019 ed.)
I have been posting a lot recently about the destruction of our national monuments. This disturbs me greatly, because I see it as a way to eradicate and change our history. The monuments pay homage to ancestors who fought in ancient wars, but nevertheless, they were war veterans, and the monuments should be treated with respect. If someone desecrated a war memorial to Korean War vets, I would be deeply upset, because my dad fought in that war with the Marines.
Same goes for Civil War vets. They were recognized as American vets long ago, and yet, today, because of the changing tide of political correctness, their monuments have been inappropriately deemed as racist. This is completely wrong and inaccurate, and still, the monuments keep coming down. Recently, the Tennessee Supreme Court found that the Sons of Confederate Veterans could not appeal the decision for Memphis to take down three Confederate monuments. I find this shameful, especially since one of the monuments marked the graves of Nathan Bedford Forrest and his wife. General Forrest was a trendsetter in establishing interracial relations in Memphis, but this has all been washed over. I only wish correct history was taught in our schools.
I also find it disturbing that the Confederate battle flag is forever linked with the KKK, and thus, is also deemed as racist. This is also completely inaccurate. If anything, the Stars and Stripes should be associated with racism. It was that flag that flew over slave ships, and the KKK also used it repeatedly. The Confederate battle flag, also known as the Southern Cross, is based on the Scottish St. Andrews Cross. Therefore, it has deep Christian roots, and has nothing to do with racism.
Not to offend anyone, but I will continue to express my disdain and vigilance supporting the Confederate monuments and flags. People today don’t understand that the Confederacy didn’t consist of Southern slave holders. There were Rebels in the north and west, Southern sympathizers in the north, Slave holders in the north and west, and black slave holders as well. That is why I love writing about this time period. It was topsy-turvy, all convoluted, and a mixed bag of new immigrants coming in, as well as Native American people being eradicated. Genocide was okay back then, and political incorrectness was, too. I wish people, especially those with political clout, would keep that in mind when they decide to destroy our history. How can we remember our mistakes if all the remembrances are destroyed?
