Let's Talk About That New Confederate Monument
Next week I will talk with one of the organizers of this recent dedication and you will have a chance to share your feedback as well.
By now many of you have heard about the recent dedication of a Confederate monument on the Franklin battlefield in Franklin, Tennessee. If not, you can read my post or this local news article about the event to get up to speed. I’ve been thinking about this dedication all weekend.
On Monday I am going to interview my friend and fellow historian Eric Jacobson, who was involved in the organization and dedication of the monument. Eric is the CEO of The Battle of Franklin Trust and has led the way in both preserving and interpreting the Franklin battlefield. In addition, he has been involved in a number of commemorative projects in and around Franklin over the past few years.
I very much appreciate Eric taking the time to talk with me and willingness to share his perspective on what many people view as a controversial addition to the community’s commemorative landscape.
This promises to be an engaging and thoughtful conversation, but please note that it will only be accessible to paid subscribers.
Your input is important to me. Feel free to share any questions that you would like me to ask Eric in the comments section below. I do hope that some of you will consider upgrading to a paid subscription. Your support makes it possible for me to continue to bring these video interviews to you.
I will do my best to post our conversation as soon as possible on Monday, but I also want to give you a chance to share your feedback as well. On Thursday evening at 8PM EST I will host a zoom chat for all paid subscribers. This is your chance to ask questions of me, share your thoughts, and learn from others. Look for an email from me some time on Wednesday.
Note, I hope to schedule these Office Hours more regularly in the future.
Finally, as an incentive for you to upgrade, I am giving all paid subscribers an opportunity to win one of four new Civil War books from LSU Press. That’s four chances to win. Not bad. Winners will be announced on Friday, May 24.
Weekend News
Governor Glenn Youngkin finally vetoed the two bills having to do with Confederate heritage organizations in Virginia.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia vetoed on Friday two bills that would have revoked tax exemptions for the United Daughters of the Confederacy, a century-old organization that has often been at the center of debates over the state’s Confederate past and its racial history….
The organization’s property tax exemptions were added to the state code in the 1950s, during segregation and when the Commonwealth maintained a closer relationship with the group. The organization’s Virginia division is also exempt from paying recordation taxes, which are levied when property sales are registered for public record….
The legislature also narrowly passed a bill to repeal special license plates featuring Robert E. Lee and the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a men’s heritage organization. Governor Youngkin also vetoed that bill on Friday.
Can’t say I am surprised.
We are currently running through the 160th anniversary of the Overland Campaign—some of the bloodiest fighting of the entire Civil War in Virginia in 1864. Here is Garry Adelman doing what he does best.
A maybe not too small issue involved in Governor Youngkin's vetoes favoring continued public honoring of the Confederacy and, inherently, its crimes against humanity:
Earlier in Civil War Memory, there was a suggestion that a historic ownership entanglement of the Confederate Memorial Literary Society with the American Civil War Museum in Richmond could or would mean tax problems for the museum if there were no veto. That society was reportedly targeted in the vetoed legislation.
This stuff is going to come up again. When it does--in fact, before it does--I hope there's clarification about possible effects on the museum, which in my view should not suffer unintended consequences from cessation of public honoring of the Confederacy. Thanks.
Would he comment on Hood's role in getting his troops wiped out at Franklin? (Though that might not be relevant to the placing of the monument.)
Does he think the inscription on the slab is accurate? In what way did Texas Confederates fighting in Tennessee close to the end of the war "serve their state"? (I'm one of those who think Sam Houston best served his state by trying to prevent secession and warning what it would lead to.)
Will be interested to see the course of your dicussion.
As to Youngkin, so much for his claims of moderation.