Confederate Memorial Day Events Scheduled At Beauvoir
On April 24, 2010 at 11 am The Commander-in-Chief of the Sons of Confederate veterans, the Hon. Chuck McMichael, will present the new statue of Jefferson Davis with his son Joseph and Jim Limber to Beauvoir. The statue was commissioned by the National Sons of Confederate Veterans to honor President Davis on his 200th birthday. At 12 noon there will be dinner on the grounds, please bring your favorite covered dish.
At 2 pm there will be a memorial service in the Confederate cemetery. The keynote speaker will be C-I-C McMichael.
Contact Rick Forte director@beauvoir.org or call 228-388-4400 for questions or more information.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
NORTH CAROLINA FLAGS TO BE CONSERVED
NEWS RELEASE
Press Contacts:
Susan Friday Lamb, 919-807-7943
Tom Belton, 919-807-7952
SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS FUND CONSERVATION OF BATTLE FLAGS AT MUSEUM OF HISTORY
Three Confederate flags that were once carried into battle will now be carefully transported to West Virginia for specialized conservation treatment. These banners, the colors of the 24th, 34th and 38th N.C. Troops, are part of the flag collection at the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh.
Restoration of these flags requires expensive textile treatment, and the N.C. Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans has helped make this possible. On March 18, the organization, which has 90 camps (chapters) across the state, presented a $28,361 check to staff members at the Museum of History during a brief ceremony. The funds will also be used to purchase a much-needed storage rack for the museum’s conserved flags.
“The North Carolina Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans is very proud and honored to be a part of this flag restoration project,” says Tom Smith, Commander of the N.C. Division. “I can state with assurance that our members are dedicated to the work of historic conservation and preservation. We have helped the Museum of History with several other projects and preservation efforts over the years and have enjoyed a productive relationship with the museum.”
According to museum curator Tom Belton, the Sons of Confederate Veterans, along with other groups, have been instrumental in funding flag conservation for the Museum of History in preparation for exhibition during the N.C. Civil War Sesquicentennial. From 2011 to 2015, exhibits and programs will take place across the state in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War in North Carolina.
After the conservation work is completed for the flags 24th, 34th and 38th N.C. Troops, the N.C. Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans will present the banners during a dedication ceremony at the Museum of History.
For details about the Museum of History, call 919-807-7900 or access ncmuseumofhistory.org or Facebook®. For information about the N.C. Civil War Sesquicentennial, access www.ncculture.com.
The Museum of History is located at 5 E. Edenton St., across from the State Capitol. Parking is available in the lot across Wilmington Street. The museum is part of the Division of State History Museums, Office of Archives and History, an agency of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, www.ncculture.com.
# # #
IMAGE CAPTION: Tom Smith (far left), Commander of the N.C. Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV), presents a $28,361 check to Heyward McKinney, Chief Operations Officer at the N.C. Museum of History. In the back row are (left to right) SCV member Ellis Selph; N.C. Museum of History staff members Jackson Marshall and Tom Belton; and SCV members Frank Powell, Bill Johnson and Robert Thomas.
See website at: ncmuseumofhistory.org.
Susan Friday Lamb
Public Information Officer
N.C. Museum of History
Office: 919-807-7943
Fax: 919-733-8655
Press Contacts:
Susan Friday Lamb, 919-807-7943
Tom Belton, 919-807-7952
SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS FUND CONSERVATION OF BATTLE FLAGS AT MUSEUM OF HISTORY
Three Confederate flags that were once carried into battle will now be carefully transported to West Virginia for specialized conservation treatment. These banners, the colors of the 24th, 34th and 38th N.C. Troops, are part of the flag collection at the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh.
Restoration of these flags requires expensive textile treatment, and the N.C. Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans has helped make this possible. On March 18, the organization, which has 90 camps (chapters) across the state, presented a $28,361 check to staff members at the Museum of History during a brief ceremony. The funds will also be used to purchase a much-needed storage rack for the museum’s conserved flags.
“The North Carolina Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans is very proud and honored to be a part of this flag restoration project,” says Tom Smith, Commander of the N.C. Division. “I can state with assurance that our members are dedicated to the work of historic conservation and preservation. We have helped the Museum of History with several other projects and preservation efforts over the years and have enjoyed a productive relationship with the museum.”
According to museum curator Tom Belton, the Sons of Confederate Veterans, along with other groups, have been instrumental in funding flag conservation for the Museum of History in preparation for exhibition during the N.C. Civil War Sesquicentennial. From 2011 to 2015, exhibits and programs will take place across the state in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War in North Carolina.
After the conservation work is completed for the flags 24th, 34th and 38th N.C. Troops, the N.C. Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans will present the banners during a dedication ceremony at the Museum of History.
For details about the Museum of History, call 919-807-7900 or access ncmuseumofhistory.org or Facebook®. For information about the N.C. Civil War Sesquicentennial, access www.ncculture.com.
The Museum of History is located at 5 E. Edenton St., across from the State Capitol. Parking is available in the lot across Wilmington Street. The museum is part of the Division of State History Museums, Office of Archives and History, an agency of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, www.ncculture.com.
# # #
IMAGE CAPTION: Tom Smith (far left), Commander of the N.C. Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV), presents a $28,361 check to Heyward McKinney, Chief Operations Officer at the N.C. Museum of History. In the back row are (left to right) SCV member Ellis Selph; N.C. Museum of History staff members Jackson Marshall and Tom Belton; and SCV members Frank Powell, Bill Johnson and Robert Thomas.
See website at: ncmuseumofhistory.org.
Susan Friday Lamb
Public Information Officer
N.C. Museum of History
Office: 919-807-7943
Fax: 919-733-8655
Monday, March 29, 2010
COURT VICTORY IN TEXAS CASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Austin Court of Appeals Repudiates Bush-Perry Position
Replacement of Confederate Plaques at Supreme Court Building Violated Law
In a legal controversy going back to George W. Bush’s second term as governor, the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin handed Mr. Bush and his gubernatorial successor, Rick Perry, a stinging repudiation on Friday.
The appellate court ruled that the state acting through the executive department did not follow state law in replacing plaques dedicating the Texas Supreme Court Building to Texas Confederate soldiers.
In Strybos and Texas Division Sons of Confederate Veterans, Inc. v. Rick Perry, et al, the Court stated, “We render judgment declaring that the appellees' (State’s) installation of the new dedication plaque without Texas Historical Commission approval violated Texas Government Code section 2166.501.
The lawsuit, originating in 2000, resulted when then Gov. Bush ordered two plaques removed from the Supreme Court building under pressure from the NAACP. The plaques were removed the night of Friday, June 9, 2000 between 5:00 P.M. and 11:00 P.M. according to work orders made public during the suit.
The plaques had been placed in the building’s lobby soon after its construction in 1962 because the state had used money from the Confederate veterans pension fund for constructing that building and a number of others in Austin.
Ray James of College Station, Texas Division Commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) characterized the ruling as a “great victory.” Referring to Bush’s orders to replace the plaques, James declared, “No man, not even the Governor of Texas, can take the law into his own hands. Even he must follow the proper procedure.”
“Some folks at the state may think they won this case,” he continued. Shaking his head, James countered, “Any citizen in the state can tell you that the SCV won because the State is paying the SCV’s attorney’s fees In our legal system, the loser pays the winner.”
The proper procedure, according to the Court’s opinion, was to “obtain the approval of the Texas Historical Commission regarding the form, dimensions, and substance of, and inscriptions or illustrations on” any replacement plaque. No such approval was sought.
The replacement was characterized by the Sons of Confederate Veterans as “politically correct” and so ambiguous as to violate the law’s requirements.
While the Court’s opinion allows the removal of the original plaques which the plaintiffs had sought to restore to the building, James dismissed the importance of any such holding. “We won all important points,” he declared. “The Historical Commission as required by law, not some nameless bureaucrat and not the governor, is the only one who can decide what the dedicatory plaques should say.”
James vowed that the battle for an appropriate dedicatory plaque in conformity with state law would shift now to the Texas Historical Commission. “What we sought in the lawsuit was for the State of Texas to obey the law,” he said, “and the State will have to do that with this decision.”
END
Contact:
Commander Ray James (979) 777-0502; r-james@tamu.edu
Joe Ginn, Division Judge Advocate (830) 833-1308; josephginn@hotmail.com
Austin Court of Appeals Repudiates Bush-Perry Position
Replacement of Confederate Plaques at Supreme Court Building Violated Law
In a legal controversy going back to George W. Bush’s second term as governor, the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin handed Mr. Bush and his gubernatorial successor, Rick Perry, a stinging repudiation on Friday.
The appellate court ruled that the state acting through the executive department did not follow state law in replacing plaques dedicating the Texas Supreme Court Building to Texas Confederate soldiers.
In Strybos and Texas Division Sons of Confederate Veterans, Inc. v. Rick Perry, et al, the Court stated, “We render judgment declaring that the appellees' (State’s) installation of the new dedication plaque without Texas Historical Commission approval violated Texas Government Code section 2166.501.
The lawsuit, originating in 2000, resulted when then Gov. Bush ordered two plaques removed from the Supreme Court building under pressure from the NAACP. The plaques were removed the night of Friday, June 9, 2000 between 5:00 P.M. and 11:00 P.M. according to work orders made public during the suit.
The plaques had been placed in the building’s lobby soon after its construction in 1962 because the state had used money from the Confederate veterans pension fund for constructing that building and a number of others in Austin.
Ray James of College Station, Texas Division Commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) characterized the ruling as a “great victory.” Referring to Bush’s orders to replace the plaques, James declared, “No man, not even the Governor of Texas, can take the law into his own hands. Even he must follow the proper procedure.”
“Some folks at the state may think they won this case,” he continued. Shaking his head, James countered, “Any citizen in the state can tell you that the SCV won because the State is paying the SCV’s attorney’s fees In our legal system, the loser pays the winner.”
The proper procedure, according to the Court’s opinion, was to “obtain the approval of the Texas Historical Commission regarding the form, dimensions, and substance of, and inscriptions or illustrations on” any replacement plaque. No such approval was sought.
The replacement was characterized by the Sons of Confederate Veterans as “politically correct” and so ambiguous as to violate the law’s requirements.
While the Court’s opinion allows the removal of the original plaques which the plaintiffs had sought to restore to the building, James dismissed the importance of any such holding. “We won all important points,” he declared. “The Historical Commission as required by law, not some nameless bureaucrat and not the governor, is the only one who can decide what the dedicatory plaques should say.”
James vowed that the battle for an appropriate dedicatory plaque in conformity with state law would shift now to the Texas Historical Commission. “What we sought in the lawsuit was for the State of Texas to obey the law,” he said, “and the State will have to do that with this decision.”
END
Contact:
Commander Ray James (979) 777-0502; r-james@tamu.edu
Joe Ginn, Division Judge Advocate (830) 833-1308; josephginn@hotmail.com
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Condensed Account of GEC Meeting - March 13, 2010
Condensed Account of the meeting of the General Executive Council ( GEC ) held at Elm Spring, Tennessee on Saturday, March 13, 2010.
1. Meeting began at 8:30 AM and opened with prayer, pledge and salute to the Confederate Flag. Roll Call of officers held and quorum was present.
2. Army of Tennessee Commander Barrow asked for a moment to make a point of personal privilege concerning the birth of his son William Barrow III.
3. ANV Councilman Gene Hogan presented Elm Springs with a "Robert E. Lee" camellia.
4. ANV Commander presented a rifle to Elm Springs which was produced as part of the fund raising efforts for the new Jefferson Davis Statue. The statue will be dedicated on April 24, 2010 at Beauvoir.
5. Executive Director Sewell gave his report. The Elm Spring home is in good condition of late needing only minor maintenance. Director Sewell also reported that the current membership in the SCV is 27,823 members including 32 Real Sons. There are also 409 Cadet Members. Discussion among members on ways to improve retention.
6. Adjutant in Chief Mark Simpson presented the minutes of the last meeting of the GEC. Minutes were approved as presented.
7. Chief of Staff Rand reported on a meeting he had with Compatriot George Church of Meridian, MS regarding the work that has been done to restore the Confederate cemetery at Marion, MS. Compatriot Church. CoS Rand presented, no behalf of Compatriot Church, a certificate of appreciation to the SCV for the support the cemetery received from the SCV along with photos of the restored cemetery.
8. Convention Planning Committee Chairman Joe Ringhoffer presented the committee recommendation regarding the bids for the 2013 SCV Convention. The bid from Vicksburg, MS was recommended. Chairman Ringhoffer gave a synopsis of each bid heard. The GEC voted to affirm this recommendation.
9. The Budget and Finance Committee reported on several requests for funding:
A. The request from the Road to Secession Seminar to be held in Texas was deferred to the July GEC meeting.
B. The Jackson County Volunteer's camp (Georgia) requested 4K to complete a statue project. The camp had already raised 43K. The GEC voted to approve the request. Past CIC Sullivan, who has relatives in the area, is working to held raise the 4K locally. If this occurs the GEC will not have to fund the entire 4K.
C. Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta ( Owned by the City of Atlanta ) requested 30K for repairs to the cemetery sidewalks in the confederate section. The request was not approved.
D. The camp in Alexandria, VA requested 2.5K for the annual Confederate Memorial Day service at Arlington Cemetery. Request was approved.
10.Councilman Hogan presented a proposal for the general organization to participate in the memorial / fund raising coin program developed in South Carolina. In consideration of the SCV providing advertising in the Veteran and the merchandise catalog the SCV will be a partner in the program.
11. CoS Rand gave a report on the 2010 Reunion to be held in Anderson, SC based on his and Chief of Protocol's planning meeting held with the planning committee on February 27 in Anderson. Planning is in progress but there are details yet to be worked out by the Anderson Host Committee.
12.Possibility of the SCV producing and awarding a POW medal was brought to the table. Proposal not adopted.
13. AoT Councilman Strain gave a report on a legal matter in Alabama. Case on hold at present.
14. The GEC voted to confirm the appointment of Compatriot Austin of North Carolina to the Investment Committee.
15. CoS Rand addressed the deadline for Division and Army Commanders to submit requests for awards to be give at the Anderson Reunion. Deadline is June 1, 2010 and nominations should be submitted on the forms listed in the notices section of the Veteran and on the scroll on the main page scv.org. The deadline for Army Commanders, Division Commanders, National Committee Chairmen and members of the General Staff to submit reports for distribution at Anderson was also discussed. As with award the deadline is June 1. Reports should be per the guidelines in the notice section of the Veteran and on the scroll on scv.org.
16. The GEC voted to use the sesquicentennial logo on an enlarged range of merchandise that non-members can purchase.
17. GEC discussed the status of a piece of property the SCV owns in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. Property, adjacent to a residential area, is overgrown and needs to be cleaned up. SCV will explore best resources to clean up property and discuss with area real estate experts the best options for the SCV to consider concerning the property.
17. CIC McMichael stated that he had not received contact information from several divisions as to who their Sesquicentennial Events Coordinator will be. He stated in the absence of a designated person in a given division the Division Commander's name will be listed on the Sesquicentennial website. He requested that each division that has not done so to promptly forward to him the name of the division's Sesquicentennial Events Coordinator.
18. GEC voted, in order to keep the Veteran on schedule and to have newly elected officers have their columns in the Veteran immediately following the convention, that candidates for offices that have regular columns in the Veteran should have a prepared article ready for submission to the Editor immediately after the convention if they are elected.
19. CHD Earnest distributed copies of his report
20. CIC unveiled a new recruiting tool for use on the internet. It will be used on the SCV main page. Coming Soon.
Meeting Closed with Prayer and the singing of DIXIE!
Prepared by:
Chuck Rand
Chief of Staff
chuckrand3@gmail.com
1. Meeting began at 8:30 AM and opened with prayer, pledge and salute to the Confederate Flag. Roll Call of officers held and quorum was present.
2. Army of Tennessee Commander Barrow asked for a moment to make a point of personal privilege concerning the birth of his son William Barrow III.
3. ANV Councilman Gene Hogan presented Elm Springs with a "Robert E. Lee" camellia.
4. ANV Commander presented a rifle to Elm Springs which was produced as part of the fund raising efforts for the new Jefferson Davis Statue. The statue will be dedicated on April 24, 2010 at Beauvoir.
5. Executive Director Sewell gave his report. The Elm Spring home is in good condition of late needing only minor maintenance. Director Sewell also reported that the current membership in the SCV is 27,823 members including 32 Real Sons. There are also 409 Cadet Members. Discussion among members on ways to improve retention.
6. Adjutant in Chief Mark Simpson presented the minutes of the last meeting of the GEC. Minutes were approved as presented.
7. Chief of Staff Rand reported on a meeting he had with Compatriot George Church of Meridian, MS regarding the work that has been done to restore the Confederate cemetery at Marion, MS. Compatriot Church. CoS Rand presented, no behalf of Compatriot Church, a certificate of appreciation to the SCV for the support the cemetery received from the SCV along with photos of the restored cemetery.
8. Convention Planning Committee Chairman Joe Ringhoffer presented the committee recommendation regarding the bids for the 2013 SCV Convention. The bid from Vicksburg, MS was recommended. Chairman Ringhoffer gave a synopsis of each bid heard. The GEC voted to affirm this recommendation.
9. The Budget and Finance Committee reported on several requests for funding:
A. The request from the Road to Secession Seminar to be held in Texas was deferred to the July GEC meeting.
B. The Jackson County Volunteer's camp (Georgia) requested 4K to complete a statue project. The camp had already raised 43K. The GEC voted to approve the request. Past CIC Sullivan, who has relatives in the area, is working to held raise the 4K locally. If this occurs the GEC will not have to fund the entire 4K.
C. Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta ( Owned by the City of Atlanta ) requested 30K for repairs to the cemetery sidewalks in the confederate section. The request was not approved.
D. The camp in Alexandria, VA requested 2.5K for the annual Confederate Memorial Day service at Arlington Cemetery. Request was approved.
10.Councilman Hogan presented a proposal for the general organization to participate in the memorial / fund raising coin program developed in South Carolina. In consideration of the SCV providing advertising in the Veteran and the merchandise catalog the SCV will be a partner in the program.
11. CoS Rand gave a report on the 2010 Reunion to be held in Anderson, SC based on his and Chief of Protocol's planning meeting held with the planning committee on February 27 in Anderson. Planning is in progress but there are details yet to be worked out by the Anderson Host Committee.
12.Possibility of the SCV producing and awarding a POW medal was brought to the table. Proposal not adopted.
13. AoT Councilman Strain gave a report on a legal matter in Alabama. Case on hold at present.
14. The GEC voted to confirm the appointment of Compatriot Austin of North Carolina to the Investment Committee.
15. CoS Rand addressed the deadline for Division and Army Commanders to submit requests for awards to be give at the Anderson Reunion. Deadline is June 1, 2010 and nominations should be submitted on the forms listed in the notices section of the Veteran and on the scroll on the main page scv.org. The deadline for Army Commanders, Division Commanders, National Committee Chairmen and members of the General Staff to submit reports for distribution at Anderson was also discussed. As with award the deadline is June 1. Reports should be per the guidelines in the notice section of the Veteran and on the scroll on scv.org.
16. The GEC voted to use the sesquicentennial logo on an enlarged range of merchandise that non-members can purchase.
17. GEC discussed the status of a piece of property the SCV owns in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. Property, adjacent to a residential area, is overgrown and needs to be cleaned up. SCV will explore best resources to clean up property and discuss with area real estate experts the best options for the SCV to consider concerning the property.
17. CIC McMichael stated that he had not received contact information from several divisions as to who their Sesquicentennial Events Coordinator will be. He stated in the absence of a designated person in a given division the Division Commander's name will be listed on the Sesquicentennial website. He requested that each division that has not done so to promptly forward to him the name of the division's Sesquicentennial Events Coordinator.
18. GEC voted, in order to keep the Veteran on schedule and to have newly elected officers have their columns in the Veteran immediately following the convention, that candidates for offices that have regular columns in the Veteran should have a prepared article ready for submission to the Editor immediately after the convention if they are elected.
19. CHD Earnest distributed copies of his report
20. CIC unveiled a new recruiting tool for use on the internet. It will be used on the SCV main page. Coming Soon.
Meeting Closed with Prayer and the singing of DIXIE!
Prepared by:
Chuck Rand
Chief of Staff
chuckrand3@gmail.com
Statue of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston Erected by SCV
BY MARTHA QUILLIN - Staff Writer
FOUR OAKS -- Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston returned to Bentonville Battlefield on Tuesday, his bronze likeness steeled against modern-day foes: vandals, climbing children and those who believe that erecting memorials to defeated Civil War commanders is a form of racism.
Johnston, politically unpopular during his lifetime, might not be universally welcomed at the state historic site near Four Oaks 145 years hence, either. That's why the Smithfield Light Infantry, a local camp of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, asked an adjacent property owner to donate land for the memorial and launched a private fundraising effort to pay the $100,000 cost of the statue.
"This is a big investment," said John M. Booker, project chairman for the SCV. "We wanted to put it on private land so that we could do it the way that we wanted."
The battle at Bentonville was fought over three cold, rainy days in March 1865 across 6,000 acres of farm and forest. The historic site includes the area where Johnston had his headquarters, and site manager Donny Taylor said he suggested the group install the statue there.
But Booker said approval would have been onerous, if not impossible, at a time when some communities have discussed dismantling their Civil War memorials or moving them to less prominent places. The Johnston statue is thought to be the first in North Carolina to honor a Civil War general.
Confederate monuments were erected on town squares and courthouse lawns across the state from the 1890s to the 1920s, often paid for by chapters of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The memorials generally honor common soldiers and unknown dead. "If you look at them, a lot of them look just alike," Booker said, because sculptors would sell copies of the same statue in different communities. It was cheaper that way.
For this statue, the SCV hired Cary sculptor Carl Regutti. He is known for his animal renditions, including a statue of Aristides, winner of the first Kentucky Derby, a centerpiece at Churchill Downs. He also crafted the monument to North Carolina's fallen firefighters, in downtown Raleigh's Nash Square.
Regutti said that for the Johnston sculpture, he read as much as he could about the general and the Battle of Bentonville, and he traveled to the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond to view Johnston's swords and pieces of his uniform.
"To create a statue like this, I really have to understand the personality," said Regutti, whose first career was as a chemist and bacteriologist.
Beloved by his soldiers
Among Civil War buffs, Johnston is known as a soldier's general. Trained at the U.S. Military Academy in the same class as Robert E. Lee, Johnston became the highest-ranking Union officer to resign his commission when he left to serve the Confederacy after his native state of Virginia seceded.
He is said to have openly resented the promotions of other officers ahead of him within the Southern army, making him unpopular among some of his peers. But, scholars say, he was beloved by the men who served under his command, because he fought and worked alongside them.
His willingness to be at the front cost him; he was repeatedly wounded in battle.
As a tactician, Johnston was at his best when he was outnumbered, as he was at Bentonville. He is said to have been a master at a particular kind of retreat, in which he would lure enemy forces into pursuing him, then trap the opposing army and attack.
Union leaders had not expected serious trouble at Bentonville as Sherman's left wing was making its way toward Goldsboro to rest and resupply. Johnston aimed to slow their advance on the one place where the Confederacy still controlled the rail lines.
Skirmishes began March 19 and were followed by all-out assaults in a back-and-forth that required Sherman to make a detour and join the fight. Sherman had 60,000 troops. Johnston had 20,000.
At the end of the third day, Johnston's troops withdrew to Smithfield and Sherman's went on to Goldsboro.On April 26, Johnston would surrender to Sherman at Bennett Place near Durham.
Images of Johnston
Craig Braswell has been portraying Johnston in re-enactments at Bennett Place and elsewhere since 1985. When he started, he had to color his red hair white to resemble Johnston, who was 58 when he fought at Bentonville. Braswell's sideburns and goatee are naturally white now, and he looks enough like the general that Regutti asked him to model for the statue.
Regutti was on hand Tuesday afternoon as a crane lifted the bigger-than-life, 400-pound bronze Johnston off a flatbed truck and set him on a slab of granite. The everlasting Johnston is fortified with stainless steel rods and is fastened firmly to his base to deter vandals from trying to swipe his sword or snap off his spurs. He looks into the distance in his frock coat, past the farm across the road, pointing.
Booker, who hopes the statue will bring additional tourists to the battlefield, said the general is trying to hold the line.
"Against the Yankees, and against political correctness."
http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/03/17/392981/generals-fans-find-him-a-home.html
FOUR OAKS -- Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston returned to Bentonville Battlefield on Tuesday, his bronze likeness steeled against modern-day foes: vandals, climbing children and those who believe that erecting memorials to defeated Civil War commanders is a form of racism.
Johnston, politically unpopular during his lifetime, might not be universally welcomed at the state historic site near Four Oaks 145 years hence, either. That's why the Smithfield Light Infantry, a local camp of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, asked an adjacent property owner to donate land for the memorial and launched a private fundraising effort to pay the $100,000 cost of the statue.
"This is a big investment," said John M. Booker, project chairman for the SCV. "We wanted to put it on private land so that we could do it the way that we wanted."
The battle at Bentonville was fought over three cold, rainy days in March 1865 across 6,000 acres of farm and forest. The historic site includes the area where Johnston had his headquarters, and site manager Donny Taylor said he suggested the group install the statue there.
But Booker said approval would have been onerous, if not impossible, at a time when some communities have discussed dismantling their Civil War memorials or moving them to less prominent places. The Johnston statue is thought to be the first in North Carolina to honor a Civil War general.
Confederate monuments were erected on town squares and courthouse lawns across the state from the 1890s to the 1920s, often paid for by chapters of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The memorials generally honor common soldiers and unknown dead. "If you look at them, a lot of them look just alike," Booker said, because sculptors would sell copies of the same statue in different communities. It was cheaper that way.
For this statue, the SCV hired Cary sculptor Carl Regutti. He is known for his animal renditions, including a statue of Aristides, winner of the first Kentucky Derby, a centerpiece at Churchill Downs. He also crafted the monument to North Carolina's fallen firefighters, in downtown Raleigh's Nash Square.
Regutti said that for the Johnston sculpture, he read as much as he could about the general and the Battle of Bentonville, and he traveled to the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond to view Johnston's swords and pieces of his uniform.
"To create a statue like this, I really have to understand the personality," said Regutti, whose first career was as a chemist and bacteriologist.
Beloved by his soldiers
Among Civil War buffs, Johnston is known as a soldier's general. Trained at the U.S. Military Academy in the same class as Robert E. Lee, Johnston became the highest-ranking Union officer to resign his commission when he left to serve the Confederacy after his native state of Virginia seceded.
He is said to have openly resented the promotions of other officers ahead of him within the Southern army, making him unpopular among some of his peers. But, scholars say, he was beloved by the men who served under his command, because he fought and worked alongside them.
His willingness to be at the front cost him; he was repeatedly wounded in battle.
As a tactician, Johnston was at his best when he was outnumbered, as he was at Bentonville. He is said to have been a master at a particular kind of retreat, in which he would lure enemy forces into pursuing him, then trap the opposing army and attack.
Union leaders had not expected serious trouble at Bentonville as Sherman's left wing was making its way toward Goldsboro to rest and resupply. Johnston aimed to slow their advance on the one place where the Confederacy still controlled the rail lines.
Skirmishes began March 19 and were followed by all-out assaults in a back-and-forth that required Sherman to make a detour and join the fight. Sherman had 60,000 troops. Johnston had 20,000.
At the end of the third day, Johnston's troops withdrew to Smithfield and Sherman's went on to Goldsboro.On April 26, Johnston would surrender to Sherman at Bennett Place near Durham.
Images of Johnston
Craig Braswell has been portraying Johnston in re-enactments at Bennett Place and elsewhere since 1985. When he started, he had to color his red hair white to resemble Johnston, who was 58 when he fought at Bentonville. Braswell's sideburns and goatee are naturally white now, and he looks enough like the general that Regutti asked him to model for the statue.
Regutti was on hand Tuesday afternoon as a crane lifted the bigger-than-life, 400-pound bronze Johnston off a flatbed truck and set him on a slab of granite. The everlasting Johnston is fortified with stainless steel rods and is fastened firmly to his base to deter vandals from trying to swipe his sword or snap off his spurs. He looks into the distance in his frock coat, past the farm across the road, pointing.
Booker, who hopes the statue will bring additional tourists to the battlefield, said the general is trying to hold the line.
"Against the Yankees, and against political correctness."
http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/03/17/392981/generals-fans-find-him-a-home.html
Gen. Johnston Statue Erected
BY MARTHA QUILLIN - Staff Writer
FOUR OAKS -- Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston returned to Bentonville Battlefield on Tuesday, his bronze likeness steeled against modern-day foes: vandals, climbing children and those who believe that erecting memorials to defeated Civil War commanders is a form of racism.
Johnston, politically unpopular during his lifetime, might not be universally welcomed at the state historic site near Four Oaks 145 years hence, either. That's why the Smithfield Light Infantry, a local camp of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, asked an adjacent property owner to donate land for the memorial and launched a private fundraising effort to pay the $100,000 cost of the statue.
"This is a big investment," said John M. Booker, project chairman for the SCV. "We wanted to put it on private land so that we could do it the way that we wanted."
The battle at Bentonville was fought over three cold, rainy days in March 1865 across 6,000 acres of farm and forest. The historic site includes the area where Johnston had his headquarters, and site manager Donny Taylor said he suggested the group install the statue there.
But Booker said approval would have been onerous, if not impossible, at a time when some communities have discussed dismantling their Civil War memorials or moving them to less prominent places. The Johnston statue is thought to be the first in North Carolina to honor a Civil War general.
Confederate monuments were erected on town squares and courthouse lawns across the state from the 1890s to the 1920s, often paid for by chapters of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The memorials generally honor common soldiers and unknown dead. "If you look at them, a lot of them look just alike," Booker said, because sculptors would sell copies of the same statue in different communities. It was cheaper that way.
For this statue, the SCV hired Cary sculptor Carl Regutti. He is known for his animal renditions, including a statue of Aristides, winner of the first Kentucky Derby, a centerpiece at Churchill Downs. He also crafted the monument to North Carolina's fallen firefighters, in downtown Raleigh's Nash Square.
Regutti said that for the Johnston sculpture, he read as much as he could about the general and the Battle of Bentonville, and he traveled to the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond to view Johnston's swords and pieces of his uniform.
"To create a statue like this, I really have to understand the personality," said Regutti, whose first career was as a chemist and bacteriologist.
Beloved by his soldiers
Among Civil War buffs, Johnston is known as a soldier's general. Trained at the U.S. Military Academy in the same class as Robert E. Lee, Johnston became the highest-ranking Union officer to resign his commission when he left to serve the Confederacy after his native state of Virginia seceded.
He is said to have openly resented the promotions of other officers ahead of him within the Southern army, making him unpopular among some of his peers. But, scholars say, he was beloved by the men who served under his command, because he fought and worked alongside them.
His willingness to be at the front cost him; he was repeatedly wounded in battle.
As a tactician, Johnston was at his best when he was outnumbered, as he was at Bentonville. He is said to have been a master at a particular kind of retreat, in which he would lure enemy forces into pursuing him, then trap the opposing army and attack.
Union leaders had not expected serious trouble at Bentonville as Sherman's left wing was making its way toward Goldsboro to rest and resupply. Johnston aimed to slow their advance on the one place where the Confederacy still controlled the rail lines.
Skirmishes began March 19 and were followed by all-out assaults in a back-and-forth that required Sherman to make a detour and join the fight. Sherman had 60,000 troops. Johnston had 20,000. At the end of the third day, Johnston's troops withdrew to Smithfield and Sherman's went on to Goldsboro. On April 26, Johnston would surrender to Sherman at Bennett Place near Durham.
Images of Johnston
Craig Braswell has been portraying Johnston in re-enactments at Bennett Place and elsewhere since 1985. When he started, he had to color his red hair white to resemble Johnston, who was 58 when he fought at Bentonville. Braswell's sideburns and goatee are naturally white now, and he looks enough like the general that Regutti asked him to model for the statue.
Regutti was on hand Tuesday afternoon as a crane lifted the bigger-than-life, 400-pound bronze Johnston off a flatbed truck and set him on a slab of granite. The everlasting Johnston is fortified with stainless steel rods and is fastened firmly to his base to deter vandals from trying to swipe his sword or snap off his spurs. He looks into the distance in his frock coat, past the farm across the road, pointing.
Booker, who hopes the statue will bring additional tourists to the battlefield, said the general is trying to hold the line. "Against the Yankees, and against political correctness."
http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/03/17/392981/generals-fans-find-him-a-home.html
FOUR OAKS -- Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston returned to Bentonville Battlefield on Tuesday, his bronze likeness steeled against modern-day foes: vandals, climbing children and those who believe that erecting memorials to defeated Civil War commanders is a form of racism.
Johnston, politically unpopular during his lifetime, might not be universally welcomed at the state historic site near Four Oaks 145 years hence, either. That's why the Smithfield Light Infantry, a local camp of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, asked an adjacent property owner to donate land for the memorial and launched a private fundraising effort to pay the $100,000 cost of the statue.
"This is a big investment," said John M. Booker, project chairman for the SCV. "We wanted to put it on private land so that we could do it the way that we wanted."
The battle at Bentonville was fought over three cold, rainy days in March 1865 across 6,000 acres of farm and forest. The historic site includes the area where Johnston had his headquarters, and site manager Donny Taylor said he suggested the group install the statue there.
But Booker said approval would have been onerous, if not impossible, at a time when some communities have discussed dismantling their Civil War memorials or moving them to less prominent places. The Johnston statue is thought to be the first in North Carolina to honor a Civil War general.
Confederate monuments were erected on town squares and courthouse lawns across the state from the 1890s to the 1920s, often paid for by chapters of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The memorials generally honor common soldiers and unknown dead. "If you look at them, a lot of them look just alike," Booker said, because sculptors would sell copies of the same statue in different communities. It was cheaper that way.
For this statue, the SCV hired Cary sculptor Carl Regutti. He is known for his animal renditions, including a statue of Aristides, winner of the first Kentucky Derby, a centerpiece at Churchill Downs. He also crafted the monument to North Carolina's fallen firefighters, in downtown Raleigh's Nash Square.
Regutti said that for the Johnston sculpture, he read as much as he could about the general and the Battle of Bentonville, and he traveled to the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond to view Johnston's swords and pieces of his uniform.
"To create a statue like this, I really have to understand the personality," said Regutti, whose first career was as a chemist and bacteriologist.
Beloved by his soldiers
Among Civil War buffs, Johnston is known as a soldier's general. Trained at the U.S. Military Academy in the same class as Robert E. Lee, Johnston became the highest-ranking Union officer to resign his commission when he left to serve the Confederacy after his native state of Virginia seceded.
He is said to have openly resented the promotions of other officers ahead of him within the Southern army, making him unpopular among some of his peers. But, scholars say, he was beloved by the men who served under his command, because he fought and worked alongside them.
His willingness to be at the front cost him; he was repeatedly wounded in battle.
As a tactician, Johnston was at his best when he was outnumbered, as he was at Bentonville. He is said to have been a master at a particular kind of retreat, in which he would lure enemy forces into pursuing him, then trap the opposing army and attack.
Union leaders had not expected serious trouble at Bentonville as Sherman's left wing was making its way toward Goldsboro to rest and resupply. Johnston aimed to slow their advance on the one place where the Confederacy still controlled the rail lines.
Skirmishes began March 19 and were followed by all-out assaults in a back-and-forth that required Sherman to make a detour and join the fight. Sherman had 60,000 troops. Johnston had 20,000. At the end of the third day, Johnston's troops withdrew to Smithfield and Sherman's went on to Goldsboro. On April 26, Johnston would surrender to Sherman at Bennett Place near Durham.
Images of Johnston
Craig Braswell has been portraying Johnston in re-enactments at Bennett Place and elsewhere since 1985. When he started, he had to color his red hair white to resemble Johnston, who was 58 when he fought at Bentonville. Braswell's sideburns and goatee are naturally white now, and he looks enough like the general that Regutti asked him to model for the statue.
Regutti was on hand Tuesday afternoon as a crane lifted the bigger-than-life, 400-pound bronze Johnston off a flatbed truck and set him on a slab of granite. The everlasting Johnston is fortified with stainless steel rods and is fastened firmly to his base to deter vandals from trying to swipe his sword or snap off his spurs. He looks into the distance in his frock coat, past the farm across the road, pointing.
Booker, who hopes the statue will bring additional tourists to the battlefield, said the general is trying to hold the line. "Against the Yankees, and against political correctness."
http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/03/17/392981/generals-fans-find-him-a-home.html
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Ole Miss to Hold Soviet Style "Election" (No Choice) on New Mascot
Colonel Reb still enlists support, controversy as Ole Miss vote nears
By Linda A. Moore
February 14, 2010 Thousands of University of Mississippi students have enrolled, matriculated and graduated without ever seeing an official mascot. In 2003, Ole Miss officials retired Colonel Reb, its bearded Southern gentleman, leaving the school with no costumed character on the sidelines at athletic events.
However, a student vote on Feb. 23 could change that. The only question on the ballot asks students to say yes or no to a student-led process to develop a new mascot.
Some students want another choice -- the return of Colonel Reb. Others say keep the Colonel in your heart and put a new mascot on the field.
"I feel that most students are supporters of Colonel Reb. We are the Ole Miss Rebels and Colonel Reb embodies that," said senior Hannah Loy, 22, leader of the Colonel Reb Foundation, established in 2003. "We don't want a new mascot, we want our mascot back," Loy said.
That's not an option, said senior Peyton Beard, 22, director of athletics for the Associated Student Body student governing board. It's a new mascot or none at all.
"Without a mascot we have nothing that can identify us," Beard said.
In a conference with an elephant, a war eagle and a commodore, Ole Miss is the only Southeastern Conference school without a mascot.
"We're not trying to take anything away from Colonel Reb. We want something that can be on the field and enhance the game-day environment," said Beard, president of the Cardinal Club, a student spirt organization. Many decisions were made by previous administrations that won't be revisited and retiring Colonel Reb is one of them, said Chancellor Dan Jones.
"Most people associated with the university are interested in moving forward to an on-the-field mascot that will unify the entire Ole Miss community," Jones said.
Ole Miss opened with 80 students in 1848. Today, there are about 18,000 students system-wide, including about 14,000 on the Oxford campus. Colonel Reb first appeared in cartoon form in the 1930s and stepped onto the field as as a costumed mascot in 1979.
Meanwhile, with the vote looming, Loy said she was unable to send messages to her organization's Facebook group and she's suspicious as to why. "The administration has used manipulations and deceptions in the past regarding this issue," she said. "We wouldn't be surprised if they used their power to contact Facebook directly on this matter. I wouldn't put it past them."
Officials with Facebook did not respond on Friday to a media inquiry. Jones denied Loy's accusation. If students decide they want a new mascot, the administration will facilitate the process but not attempt to influence it, he said. "We'll offer them advice, resources and support in any way that we can," Jones said.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/feb/14/colonel-reb-still-enlists-support-controversy-as/
By Linda A. Moore
February 14, 2010 Thousands of University of Mississippi students have enrolled, matriculated and graduated without ever seeing an official mascot. In 2003, Ole Miss officials retired Colonel Reb, its bearded Southern gentleman, leaving the school with no costumed character on the sidelines at athletic events.
However, a student vote on Feb. 23 could change that. The only question on the ballot asks students to say yes or no to a student-led process to develop a new mascot.
Some students want another choice -- the return of Colonel Reb. Others say keep the Colonel in your heart and put a new mascot on the field.
"I feel that most students are supporters of Colonel Reb. We are the Ole Miss Rebels and Colonel Reb embodies that," said senior Hannah Loy, 22, leader of the Colonel Reb Foundation, established in 2003. "We don't want a new mascot, we want our mascot back," Loy said.
That's not an option, said senior Peyton Beard, 22, director of athletics for the Associated Student Body student governing board. It's a new mascot or none at all.
"Without a mascot we have nothing that can identify us," Beard said.
In a conference with an elephant, a war eagle and a commodore, Ole Miss is the only Southeastern Conference school without a mascot.
"We're not trying to take anything away from Colonel Reb. We want something that can be on the field and enhance the game-day environment," said Beard, president of the Cardinal Club, a student spirt organization. Many decisions were made by previous administrations that won't be revisited and retiring Colonel Reb is one of them, said Chancellor Dan Jones.
"Most people associated with the university are interested in moving forward to an on-the-field mascot that will unify the entire Ole Miss community," Jones said.
Ole Miss opened with 80 students in 1848. Today, there are about 18,000 students system-wide, including about 14,000 on the Oxford campus. Colonel Reb first appeared in cartoon form in the 1930s and stepped onto the field as as a costumed mascot in 1979.
Meanwhile, with the vote looming, Loy said she was unable to send messages to her organization's Facebook group and she's suspicious as to why. "The administration has used manipulations and deceptions in the past regarding this issue," she said. "We wouldn't be surprised if they used their power to contact Facebook directly on this matter. I wouldn't put it past them."
Officials with Facebook did not respond on Friday to a media inquiry. Jones denied Loy's accusation. If students decide they want a new mascot, the administration will facilitate the process but not attempt to influence it, he said. "We'll offer them advice, resources and support in any way that we can," Jones said.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/feb/14/colonel-reb-still-enlists-support-controversy-as/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
