Here’s what I submitted for our American Legion newsletter:
‘On July 23, 1885, just a few days after completing his memoirs, former President, Civil War General and Commander of the Union Armies Ulysses S. Grant died of throat cancer.
During the funeral procession, officers of the US Army rode in the same carriages with former Confederate officers. The column of mourners was said to have been seven miles long.
Grant’s funeral was attended by three United States Presidents (President Grover Cleveland and former Presidents Hayes & Arthur), the members of Cleveland’s cabinet, Justices of the Supreme Court, and almost every member of Congress. Grant was held in high esteem among Civil War veterans - North and South - and many veterans attended the funeral.
Grant’s Honorary Pall Bearers were chosen by Mrs. Julia Grant for the funeral on 08 August, 1885, in NYC. They included Generals William Sherman & Phillip Sheridan, ADM David Porter, as well as former Confederate Generals Simon B. Buckner and Joseph E. Johnston.
These great men respected each other immensely and paid their respects to their former adversaries when they passed away.
When General Sherman died, Joseph E. Johnston, the Confederate General who commanded the resistance to Sherman’s troops in Georgia & the Carolinas, served as a Pallbearer.
Who are we to attempt to erase history, if the men who fought the horrific battles could forgive and embrace their former foes as fellow Americans? Anybody involved in the business of tearing down historical monuments should find themselves erased from history in short order.
Very nice essay you submitted.
“Anybody involved in the business of tearing down historical monuments should find themselves erased from history in short order.”
Nikki Haley was the first prominent American figure to call for the destruction of these historical monuments.