Dedication of the Union Monument at Union
Monroe Watchman
The Confederate Monument
Dedicated to the Confederate Soldiers of Monroe County
August 29, 1901
Monroe Watchman
The Confederate Monument
Dedicated to the Confederate Soldiers of Monroe County
August 29, 1901
The Watchman presents above an engraving of the Monument to the Confederate soldiers of Monroe county, to be unveiled at Union today. (Aug. 29). The base is of native blue limestone, the pedestal is 10 feet of Barre granite and is surmounted by the figure of a Confederate Infantryman carved of white marble in Italy and imported from that country. It is a triumph of the sculptor's art, a chaste and beautiful production, and has received the hearty praise of all good judges who have examined it. It will be seen that the soldier in marble is standing at parade rest. His features are those of a young man, for of such were the armies of the Confederacy chiefly comprised; and well has it been said that our great civil war was "an old man's quarrel and a young man's fight." It is in keeping with the truth of history that the artist has substituted the slouch hat for the cap. After the first year of the war caps were rarely seen in the army and the Southern soldier's "butternut" grey was usually topped off with the soft slouch hat. The total height of the monument is 19 feet and 6 inches, and its total weight about 40,000 pounds. Its dimensions compare favorably with those of the great majority of soldier's monuments erected throughout the country. The contractors, as is well known in this locality, were the Hinton Marble Works.
The carvings upon the granite plinth present on the one side the cannon typical of the artillery branch of the service, and on the other the crossed sabres of the cavalry. At the front is chiseled the inscription: "Confederate Soldiers of Monroe County;" and above it this quotation from General Lee's Farewell Address to the Army: "There is a true glory and a true honor, - the glory of duty done, the honor of integrity of principle."
The corner-stone of the monument was laid Sept. 6, 1900, with Masonic ceremonies, and in it were deposited the rolls of the companies of Confederate troops organized in Monroe county. Hon. Jno. W. Arbuckle, of Lewisburg, upon that occasion delivered an eloquent and appropriate oration.
The movement which has its honorable consummation in the unveiling of this monument today was inaugurated by the now lamented General John Echols immediately after his never-to-be-forgotten address delivered in 1894, upon the occasion of the first Confederate Reunion held in this county after the close of the war. General Echols subscribed a liberal amount upon condition that a sum be raised from other sources sufficient to complete the work. A Committee was appointed and the undertaking begun, but before the task was concluded the death of Gen. Echols occurred. It then seemed that the enterprise was destined to failure; but later Hon. Edward Echols, with a noble generosity, voluntarily took his father's place in relation to the work, and when the Committee and the people, encouraged by his large-hearted proffer, had continued their efforts and at last succeeded in raising the pre-requisite sum, Mr. Echols paid his father's subscription. Others from a distance have given generously, conspicuous among them the late Mr. John Caperton of Louisville, Ky., (who also passed over to the silent majority before the undertaking was completed) and Mrs. A. B. Symns, of Athinson, Kansas, who was a Miss Tiffany, of Monroe county; and many in Monroe county have labored faithfully, especially the patriotic and devoted ladies of the county, to carry into effect this praise-worthy design. We congratulate all its ____ their self-imposed task of love has been concluded in a manner so creditable to themselves, and that this day there is to be unveiled a goodly memorial in marble and granite, as enduring we hope as the everlasting hills, in honor of every Confederate soldier from Monroe county, whether officer or private, who trod the path of duty, "which is the way to glory."
It is meet also that due acknowledgement be made of the donation of a site for the Monument by Mrs. E. F. Bingham and her two children, Miss Hallie Patton and Mr. A. G. Patton. They have generously given a grassy plot upon a pretty knoll upon the northern outskirts of Union upon the summit of which the Monument stands within range of the vision from almost every direction. To their kindness the Committee and the people are also indebted for the use of the splendid grove in which the Reunion today, like those of the past, will be held.