History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography, Volume I, Part 66

Author: Owen, Thomas McAdory, 1866-1920; Owen, Marie (Bankhead) Mrs. 1869-
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 756

USA > Alabama > History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography, Volume I > Part 66

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Centerville: in Courthouse Square; to the Confederate soldiers and sailors; by Bibb County Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated July 22, 1910 .- The Centerville Press, July 28, 1910.

Eufaula: in public square; to Confederate dead of Barbour County; by Barbour County Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated November 24, 1904; cost $3,000 .- Confederate Veteran, January, 1905; October, 1909.

Florence: in public square; to the Confed- erate dead of Lauderdale County; by Ladies Memorial Association and Florence Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated April 25, 1903; cost $2,000 .- Confederate Veteran, June, 1903; History of the Confederated Memorial Associations (1903), p. 62; Emerson, Historic southern monuments (1911), p. 24, ill.

Gadsden: Portrait statue at east end of Broad Street, overlooking Coosa River, and com- manding a view of the city; to "Emma Sansom, a woman worthy of being remembered by her countrymen as long as courage is deemed a virtue, who rode with General Forrest in the engagement at Black Creek, May 2, 1863, and by guiding his men to an unguarded ford en- abled him to capture Colonel A. D. Streight and his entire command"; by Gadsden Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated July 4, 1907; cost $3,500 .- Gadsden Daily Times-News, July 4, 1907; Gads- den Evening Journal, July 5, 1907.

Gainesville: in the cemetery; to Confederate

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dead; by Ladies Memorial Association; dedi- cated April 26, 1876; cost $2,000 .- Confederate Veteran, April, 1899; History of the Confeder- ated Memorial Associations (1903), p. 60.

Greensboro: in cemetery; to Confederate dead; by citizens; dedicated April 26, 1872 .- W. E. W. Yerby. History of Greensboro (1908), pp. 65-68.

Greensboro: on Courthouse Square; "In memory of our Confederate soldiers"; by Ladies Memorial Association; dedicated May 12, 1904 .- Ibid; and Confederate Veteran, October, 1904.

Greenville: to "Our Confederate Dead"; by Father Ryan Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated June 6, 1903 .- Confederate Veteran, July, 1903.

Huntsville: In public square; "In memory of the heroes who fell in defense of the principles which gave birth to the Confederate Cause"; by Virginia Clay-Clopton Chapter, U. D. C .; dedi- cated November 21, 1905; cost $2,500 .- Confed- erate Veteran, December, 1905, and January, 1906.

Jacksonville: Portrait marble statue over grave in cemetery; to "The Gallant" John Pel- ham, Major in Stuart Horse Artillery, C. S. A .; by John H. Forney Chapter, U. D. C .; unveiled October 10, 1905 .- Montgomery Advertiser, Octo- ber 11, 1905.

Jacksonville: on public square; to soldiers of Calhoun County; by John H. Forney Chap- ter, U. D. C .; dedicated August 6, 1909; cost $850 .- U. S. C. V., Bulletin, May, 1910, p. 131.

Jasper: on public square; "To our Confeder- ate Soldiers"; by Jasper Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated May 2, 1907; cost $3,550 .- Emerson, Historie southern monuments (1911), p. 28, ill.

Livingston: on public square; to "Our Con- federate Heroes, with the names of all soldiers from Sumter County in the Confederate serv- ice"; by Sumter Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated June 17, 1909; cost $1,600 .- Our Southern Home, June 16, 1909; Confederated Southern Memorial Association, Minutes, 1909, p. 19.

Marion: in city cemetery; "To the Memory of Our Unreturned dead"; by Ladies Memorial Association ; dedicated April 26, 1882; cost about $300 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Depart- ment of Archives and History.

Marion: on Courthouse Square; by Andrew Barry Moore Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated April 26, 1916; cost $600 .- Alabama Division, U. D. C., Minutes, 1916, p. 212.

Marion : Confederate cannon, mounted on Courthouse Square; the gift of Dr. G. P. L. Reid, and committed to the care of the Andrew B. Moore Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated April 26, 1916 .- Confederated Southern Memorial Asso- ciation, Minutes, 1916, p. 38.

Mobile: Portrait bronze statue in Duncan Place; Admiral Raphael Semmes, C. S. N., com- mander of the Florida and the Alabama; by Ann T. Hunter Auxiliary to Raphael Semmes Camp, U. C. V .; unveiled June 26, 1900 .- Confederate Veteran, January, 1905; Emerson, Historic southern monuments (1911), p. 31.

Mobile: Portrait bronze statue in Ryan Place; to the memory of Father Abram J. Ryan, Poet- Priest of the South; by people of Mobile and of the South; unveiled July 12, 1913 .- Confederate Veteron, July, 1905, p. 299; Proceedings of the

ceremony of unveiling of the monument to Father Ryan (1913).

Montgomery: in Confederate Rest section of Oakwood Cemetery; "To our noble dead"; by Ladies Memorial Association of Montgomery; dedicated April 26, 1868 .- Manuscript data in Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Montgomery: in Confederate Rest section of Oakwood Cemetery; to "Independent Rifles," Company E, Sixth Alabama Infantry Regiment, Confederate States Army; by surviving mem- bers; dedicated April 26, 1884 .- Manuscript data in Alabama Department of Archives and His- tory.

Montgomery: Brass six-pointed star, sunk in marble tile on front or west portico of the state capitol; to mark the spot where Jefferson Davis stood, February 18, 1861, when inaugurated pro- visional president of the Confederate States of America; by Sophie Bibb Chapter, U. D. C., Montgomery; unveiled May 20, 1897 .- History of the Sophie Bibb Chopter, U. D. C. (1911), p. 5.

Montgomery: on State Capitol Square; "Con- secrated to the memory of the Confederate Sol- diers and Seamen"; by Ladies Memorial Asso- ciation of Montgomery, contributions by the people of the state, and appropriations by the Alabama Legislature; corner stone laid April 26, 1889, by President Jefferson Davis, and dedi- cated December 7, 1898; cost $46,000 .- Mrs. I. M. P. Ockenden, The Confederate Monument of Capitol Hill (1900); Mrs. Chappell Cory, Ladies Memorial Association of Montgomery, its origin and organization (1902); History of the Confederate Memorial Associations (1903), p. 42; Confederate Veteran, January, 1905; Emer- son, Historic southern monuments (1911), p. 34.

Montgomery: Marble tablet on Commerce Street side of building, southwest corner of Bibb and Commerce Streets; to commemorate the use of this building as the first separate offices of the provisional government of the Confederate States of America, February-May, 1861; by Sophie Bibb Chapter, U. D. C .; June 3, 1911 .- Manuscript data in Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Montgomery: Stone, sunk to ground level, on northwest corner of Hull and Cherry Streets; to mark site of home of Dr. and Mrs. Carnot Bel- linger, who established and donated the first "Soldiers' Home" in Montgomery, and which was located near their residence; by Winnie Davis Chapter, Children of the Confederacy; un- veiled June 10, 1911 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Montgomery: on south wall of the hall of the house of representatives, state capitol; to mark the room in which the Ordinance of Secession was adopted, January 11, 1861; by Ladies Me- morial Association of Montgomery; unveiled November 7, 1911 .- Manuscript data in the Ala- bama Department of Archives and History.

Montgomery: Bronze tablet on southwest wall of west basement room of Court Street Methodist Episcopal Church, South; to com- memorate the organization of the Ladies Memo- rial Association of Montgomery in the basement of the church, April 16, 1866; by Montgomery Junior Memorial Association ; unveiled April 26,

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1912 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Depart- ment of Archives and History.

Montgomery: on west side of Church Street, near Lee Street; to mark the home of Mrs. J. C. Lee, to which since 1872 the children of Mont- gomery have brought their tribute of flowers for use on Confederate Memorial Day, April 26 every year; by Mary Graves Lee Junior Memo- rial Association of Montgomery; unveiled April 26, 1913 .- Confederated Southern Memorial Association, Minutes, 1913, pp. 46-47.

Montgomery: Bronze tablet on Montgomery Street entrance to the new Exchange Hotel; to commemorate old Exchange Hotel, for more than 50 years the social and political center of the state, and where for a time the executive offices of the Provisional Government of the Confederate States of America were located; by the Cradle of the Confederacy Chapter, U. D. C., Montgomery; unveiled May 10, 1913 .- Manu- script data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Montgomery: Confederate memorial double arch, in Oakwood Cemetery, near main en- trance; to the members, living and dead, of Camp Lomax, No. 151, United Confederate Vet- erans, Montgomery; by the camp and friends; dedicated April 26, 1911 .- Manuscript data in Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Mountain Creek: northeast corner of the audi- torium, or main building of the Confederate Soldiers Home; to Capt. Jefferson Manly Falk- ner, a Confederate soldier and founder of the Home; by the Board of Control; dedicated August 1, 1908; cost $461.56 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Opelika: in monument park near courthouse; to Confederate dead and Lee County Veterans; by Robert E. Lee Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated April 6, 1911 .- Confederate Veteran, May, 1911, and July, 1911.

Ozark: on public square; to soldiers of Dale County; by Stonewall Jackson Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated April 26, 1910; cost $2,000 .- U. S. C. V., Bulletin, May, 1910, p. 132.

Prattville: on Courthouse Square; to "The noble Confederate soldiers who cheerfully of- fered their lives in defense of the right of local self-government"; by Merrill E. Pratt Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated October 26, 1908 .- Confed- erate Veteran, February, 1909.

Robinson Springs: Confederate memorial double arch in center of village, on Montgomery and Elmore highway; to the members, living and dead, of Robinson Springs Camp, United Confederate Veterans; by the camp and friends; dedicated July 4, 1913 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Russellville: at intersection of Franklin and Jackson Streets; "To the Defenders of the old Southland, her Altars and her Firesides;" by John W. Harris Chapter, U. D. C .; erected Janu- ary 28, 1910; cost $1,500 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and His- tory.

Selma: Boulder on the site of Selma Naval Yard and Ordnance Works destroyed by Fed- erals, 1865; "In honor of the memory of hun- dreds of faithful men who made these great works a base for war material for the entire

Confederate Army and Navy"; by Alabama Division, U. D. C .; dedicated May 2, 1917; cost $411.25 .- Alabama Division, U. D. C., Minutes, 1917, pp. 123, 149.

Tuscaloosa: in Greenwood, the old city ceme- tery; to Confederate dead; by Ladies Memorial Association; dedicated April 26, 1880; cost $700. -Emerson, Historic southern monuments (1911), p. 37, ill.

Tuscumbia: on Courthouse Square; "To Con- federate Soldiers of Colbert County"; by Tus- cumbia Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated May 7, 1911 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama State Department of Archives and History.

Tuskegee: on Monument Square; "To the Con- federate Soldiers of Macon County"; by Tuske- gee Chapter, U. D. C .; dedicated October 12, 1909; cost $2,200 .- Manuscript data in the Ala- bama Department of Archives and History.

Union Springs: at intersection of North and South Prairie Streets; to Confederate Soldiers; and also marble headstones at graves of Con- federate dead in old cemetery; by Ladies Memo- rial Association; dedicated March 29, 1895; cost $1,200 .- Confederate Southern Memorial Asso- ciation, Minutes, 1908, p. 37; and Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

University: Boulder, with bronze tablet, on the campus of the University of Alabama, Tus- caloosa; to 7 general officers, 25 colonels, 14 lieutenant-colonels, 21 majors, 125 captains, 273 staff and other commissioned officers, 66 non- commissioned officers and 294 private soldiers, students of the University, who served in the Confederate States Army and Navy; by Alabama Division, U. D. C .; dedicated May 13, 1914 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

University: Bronze tablet In Morgan Hall, University of Alabama; to Capt. Bascom T. Shockly's Escort Company of Cavalry, C. S. A .; by Montgomery County Chapter of Yallerham- mers; unveiled June 3, 1914 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

University: Bronze tablet in library of the University of Alabama; to Amelia Gayle Gorgas, wife of Josiah Gorgas, Brigadier General, C. S. A., untiring nurse in Confederate Hospitals, 1861-1865, and first historian of the Alabama Division, U. D. C., 1897-1899; by Alabama Di- vision, U. D. C .; unveiled May 30, 1916 .- Manu- script data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

University: Bronze tablet in Morgan Hall, University of Alabama; to Capt. Charles P. Storrs' Cadet Troop, Company F, 7th Alabama Cavalry Regiment, C. S. A .; by survivors and friends; unveiled May 30, 1916 .- Manuscript data in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

CONFEDERATE PENSIONS. The gen- eral administration of the pension laws of the State is vested in an ex officio board, made up of the director of the State department of archives and history, the attorney general, and the chief examiner of public accounts, and known as the Alabama Pension Commis- sion. The pension clerk in the office of the

Caroline Frances Smith (Mrs. Gilmer) first graduate of Judson College

PATSY

LENOIR

Afterward Mrs. Israel Pickins, wife of the third governor of Alabama

George S. Gaines U. S. Government factor at St. Stephens, 1805

Hon. Jack Farrell Ross First territorial and first state treasurer, 1818-1822

EARLY HISTORIC CHARACTERS

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State auditor is ex officio secretary of the commission. The disbursement of moneys to pensioners, and the accounting work in con- nection with the payment of pensions, are done by the state auditor, and all current pen- sion files are kept in his office. The probate judges are constituted county Confederate pension commissioners, and the law makes careless or willful failure, neglect or refusal of any such officer to perform any of the sev- eral duties required of him a misdemeanor, punishable by fine not exceeding $500, and also grounds for impeachment.

The funds "for the relief of needy Confed- erate soldiers and sailors. resident citizens of Alabama, and their widows," are provided by the levy of a tax of one mill, or ten cents for each hundred dollars of the assessed value of taxable property. In addition to this a spe- cial appropriation of $500,000 annually for additional relief was authorized by act of April 20, 1911, but the expenditure of this appropriation is contingent upon the condi- tion of the State treasury, in the discretion of the governor, who "may approve payment in full, or in part from time to time." The total sum available each fiscal year for pen- sions is ascertained by the auditor and pro- rated among the pensioners of the various classes on the basis of quarterly payments, as explained below.

Eligibility and Classification .- The pro- visions with reference to eligibility for a pension are: "Any resident of this State at the time of filing his application, who served in the military or naval service of this State, or of the Confederate States, and who does not now own real or personal property, one or both, to the value of more than two thousand dollars shall be entitled to the pro- visions of this act. No inmate of the Confed- erate soldiers' home at Mountain Creek, and no person who did not do other service than in the home guards, the State reserves, or the State militia of a State other than Alabama, shall be entitled to relief under this act. .

The widow of any Confederate soldier or sailor of this State or the Confederate states, who was married to such soldier or sailor before the first day of July, 1914, and who has not remarried since the death of such soldier or sailor, and whose husband did not desert the service of the State of Alabama, or the Confederate states; who is a resident of the State at the time of filing her application, and who does not now own property over the value of two thousand dollars shall also be entitled to relief under the provisions of this act. No widow of any Confederate soldier or sailor shall be entitled to the same classifi- cation upon the pension roll as the veterans unless she shall have married the veteran as whose widow she draws a pension, prior to April, 1865. All widows who were married to husbands through whose service they draw pensions since April, 1865, shall draw third class of pensions."

Pensioners are divided into three classes: first class-soldiers and sailors who are over 80 years of age, or totally blind, or who have lost two limbs or the entire use thereof;

second-those who have lost a leg or foot or arm or hand or the entire use thereof, or are over 70 years of age; and, third-all others who are entitled to relief. The commission may transfer an applicant from a lower or a higher class, "when after examination they find his or her increased disabilities or age entitles them to such transfer." It is the further duty of the commission, "from time to time to readjust and reclassify the bene- ficiaries under this act whenever the same should be done by reason of the advancing age of the beneficiaries without formal appli- cation being made therefor." The different classes of beneficiaries participate in the divi- sion of the pension fund on the basis of quar- terly payments of $25 to the first class, $20 to the second, and $16 to the third. However, if the amount of the fund remaining on hand is not sufficient to pay the pensions for the last quarter of any fiscal year upon this basis, then the amount available shall be divided prorata among all the pensioners. Likewise if the fund remaining on hand for the last quarter is more than enough to pay the amounts provided by law, the overplus shall be divided prorata among all the pensioners.

Full authority to decide all questions of Administration .- Full authority to decide all questions of eligibility, classification, restoration to rolls, and to make and promul- gate additional rules and regulations for the execution of the pension laws, is vested in the Alabama Pension Commission. For the guidance of the commissioners in their de- liberations and rulings, the law stipulates that, "the provisions of this act shall receive a liberal construction, and if any clause, para- graph or section is of doubtful construction, the same shall be construed in favor of the pensioners herein provided for."

Applications for pensions are required to be filed with the probate judge of the county in which the applicant resides, and the appli- cations, together with all papers or evidence pertaining thereto, are forwarded to the state auditor, who in turn submits them to the pen- sion commission for consideration. A further duty of probate judges is the quarterly revi- sion of the pension rolls for their counties, with respect to illegal, deceased, or removed pensioners, and the submission of a report of any such cases, accompanied by recommenda- tions for action to the pension commission.

Besides the foregoing, the following gen- eral provisions of the State pension laws are to be mentioned: absence from the State for 12 months forfeits a pension, but such pen- sioner may be restored to the roll without further proof on formal application, setting forth the fact of permanent return to the State, provided "no such pensioner shall be entitled to any quarterly allowance during the time so stricken from the rolls;" a re- jected applicant may file a new application after the lapse of 3 months from the date of rejection; pensioners securing grants by mis- representation, either by themselves or others, forfeit the pensions and are subject to indict- ment by grand jury; pensioners omitted from the rolls by mistake may, upon proof of the

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fact, be restored by the auditor and paid the amount omitted; persons who knowingly re- ceive pension money, who are not entitled thereto, are guilty of embezzlement; and any person who violates any provision of the act for which a penalty is not otherwise provided shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine not exceeding $500.

Genesis of Pension Legislation .- Alabama was among the very first of the States of the Confederacy, to recognize the claims of in- digent or disabled Confederate soldiers and sailors. As early as 1865, the senate com- mittee on military affairs reported :

"That the committee has not been able to ascertain the number of disabled soldiers who need assistance, and the information cannot be accurately obtained until a census is taken. It is deemed advisable not to adopt any measure for their permanent relief until more information can be acquired, but tem- porary aid should at once be given. By some delay, a full knowledge of the facts thereby to be discovered, it can be determined to what extent permanent help can be granted to these deserving ones.

"That substantial, effective assistance should sooner or later be theirs, no one will deny or question. It is due to the character and honor of the State to do this; it is due to the illustrious men who, in the hour of peril, counted not their lives dear in the dis- charge of what they believed and felt to be their duty. The faith of our people has been plighted, and the pledge must be redeemed. Let it not be forgotten. These unfortunates cannot turn to the Federal government and ask or claim favors. They can look to no other source than the commonwealth of Ala- bama, and they should not always look in vain. The bounties that may be given to the gallant maimed, and to those whom the glo- rious dead have bequeathed to our care and keeping, are but debts that are due them, and should be handed them not as charities but as dues and offerings of gratitude and love. While the virtues of the departed are remembered, shall their loved ones and shat- tered compeers still living be neglected? Let them be honored and cherished. It is only justice to the living and the dead. Let the duty of the State be well performed, and it will redound to her lasting honor. Let her arm be soon extended, though palsied as it is, and the good results will be seen and appreciated in the present, and felt and ac- knowledged in the future."

First Pension Law .- On February 19, 1867, an act was approved, "For the relief of maimed Officers and Soldiers who belonged to military organizations of this State, or of the Confederate States." The preamble re- cited that "Whereas, There are now resident in this State a large number of men who, while in the military service of this State, or of the Confederate States, suffered bodily mutilation, and it is fit and proper there should be some recognition by Alabama of the claim thus established, therefore. . . . , and authority was conferred upon the gov- ernor to contract with manufacturers to

supply artificial iimbs to such maimed sol- diers, at a price not to exceed $70, where the amputation had been above, and $50, where it had been below the knee joint. Provision was also made for paying $100 to any such soldier who was so badly maimed as to make it impossible that he should be benefited by any such appliance as an artificial limb, in lieu of the artificial limb authorized by law. For the purposes contemplated by the act, an appropriation of $30,000, one-half in the bonds of the State, was made.

Records are not available to show just what sums were expended under the provi- sions of the above-mentioned law, but it ap- pears that a considerable amount must have been used, for, on March 8, 1876, another act for the relief of maimed soldiers was ap- proved, whose preamble set forth that, "Whereas, There are now resident in this State a large number of men who, while in the military service of this State or of the Confederate States, suffered bodily mutilation, and who are left unprovided for by the act entitled an act 'For the relief of maimed officers and soldiers who belonged to military organizations of this State or of the Confed- erate States;' which said act was approved February 19, 1867; and whereas, the fund so appropriated has been exhausted, and, therefore, there are no monies left to furnish artificial legs to those so needing them; and whereas, many of those already furnished were worthless, and in the nature of things these limbs are of limited durability, and that by a recent contract with the State, legs of first class quality and of moderate price can be furnished to such soldiers; there- fore. .. . ", and which proceeded to author- ize the furnishing of an artificial limb, or the payment of $75 in lieu thereof, to each such soldier. An appropriation of $5,000 was made for the purpose.

Enlargement of Relief .- The last-men- tioned act was the beginning of a continuous series of appropriations for the benefit of Confederate soldiers, sailors and their widows. At each subsequent session of the legislature there has been an enlargement of the scope of the provisions of the law, and, after 1879, an increase in the appropriations. Pension relief is granted by legislative acts, and no special constitutional amendments have been deemed necessary to authorize them. Within the first 10 years of pension legislation the amount of the appropriation carried by the relief bills increased from $5,000, in 1876, to $25,000 in 1885. In 1886 the amount was increased to $30,000, and a provision for the first time introduced authorizing the payment of pensions to the widows of soldiers in cer- tain cases. '

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History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography, Volume I, Part 66

Author: Owen, Thomas McAdory, 1866-1920; Owen, Marie (Bankhead) Mrs. 1869- Publication date: 1921 Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 756

Author: Owen, Thomas McAdory, 1866-1920; Owen, Marie (Bankhead) Mrs. 1869-
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 756