Confederate Memorial

To further honor these citizens of the South, the United Daughters of the Confederacy petitioned to erect a major monument to the Confederate dead. On March 4, 1906 Secretary of War William Howard Taft granted their request. The cornerstone was laid on Nov. 12, 1912 at a ceremony featuring speakers William Jennings Bryan and James A. Tanner, a former Union corporal who lost both legs at the second Battle of Bull Run. He was commander in chief of the Union veterans group, The Grand Army of the Republic. That same evening, President William Howard Taft addressed the United Daughters of the Confederacy at a reception in the Daughters of the American Revolution's Centennial Hall.
5 7 years ago (21-05-2018)

@William Thomas, the reason why people are fighting this is because the civil war WAS about slavery. At first, Lincoln tried to appease the Southern states in his inaugural address by giving them the ability to keep their slaves. In fact, the border states were granted the ability to keep their slaves in return for their loyalty. The KEY is, the war CHANGED to be about slavery! After the emancipation proclomation, the war changed from a illegal secession to a human rights issue. The argument that we need this confederate memorials is absolutely b.s. If you want civil war history, go to a museum! There are good reasons why Germany doesn't erect statues of Hitler. They were in the wrong and the state should not spend money maintaining these statues that celebrate the confederacy (a different COUNTRY!)
1 8 years ago (15-11-2017)

Wether you like it or not Confederate soldiers are considered U.S. veterans by act of Congress. This memorial is in thier part of the cemetery, so if you don't like it don't go to the Confederate burial grounds. Monuments like these were eretcted for the purpose of reconciliation. If they tried to jail and punish all Confederate citizens they would have started another war. And by the way 99% of the Confederate soldiers were not slave owners or fighting for slavery, they were fighting for thier state. Southerners back then felt more alegance to thier state than to the USA, so really they are not traitor's.
3 8 years ago (14-08-2017)

While these soldiers fought and died under the Confederate States Flag, their sons and grandsons fought and died in World War I and II. Today their descendants, men and women, fight and die for the United States of America as proud Americans. Show some respect.
5 8 years ago (30-08-2017)

It's good that soldiers of both sides are honoured on this National Cemetry. Nobody asked for the civil war, esspecially not the soldiers who fought and died in it.
5 9 years ago (05-08-2016)