Confederate Symbols and a Divided Southern Heritage

By Calvin Goddard Zon · Originally published October 2017 · p. 44

The 2015 church killings in Charleston, S.C., by a Confederate flag waving young man and now the death of a 32-year-old woman by a suspected neo-Nazi in Charlottesville, Va., have sparked a fierce debate over the propriety of public statues, monuments, and plaques honoring the Confederacy. Most of these Confederate symbols were erected in the late 19th century and early 20th century as a reaction to the gains of emancipated slaves, and during the 1950s and 1960s as a reaction to the civil rights movement. What is little known about Civil War history is that not all white Southerners flocked to the Stars and Bars. In fact, tens of thousands actively opposed the Confederacy from the beginning. Southern Unionists formed secret peace societies, spy networks, and guerrilla bands that aided deserters and escaped Federal POWs, scouted for invading federal troops, engaged in sabotage, and battled Confederate militia. In addition, some 100,000 white Southerners found their way to Union lines and enlisted in Union regiments. Some of this was captured in the recent movie, “The Free State of Jones.” It may come as a surprise that official monuments, plaques, and grave markers have been erected to honor martyred Southern Unionists and Southerners who served in the Union army from secessionist states, including Comfort, Texas; Greene and McNairy Counties, Tenn.; Marshall, N.C.; Blue Ridge and Dawson Counties, Ga. Look them up— these sites are worth a visit. Today, Southerners who delve into their history, especially those with Unionist ancestors can take pride in that heritage and the flag of the red, white, and blue. The multitudes of largely forgotten Southern patriots, white and black, who risked and often gave their lives for the preservation of the Union and the end of slavery should be remembered and honored. In my opinion the primary purpose for erecting the public symbols of the Confederacy was not to honor rebel soldiers, but to promote the preservation of white supremacy. The insertion of the Confederate battle flag into the flags of many Southern states during the modern civil rights movement had the same motivation. The fate of public Confederate symbols is best left to local communities. They can be removed to museums or left standing, best accompanied by a written message to explain their historical context. The bold actions of Southern Unionists played an important role in the Confederacy’s downfall, and all Americans, North and South, can be grateful that the Stars and Stripes is the flag that flies at state capitals across the land. Zon is the author of Divided We Fall: The Confederacy’s Collapse From Within, A State-byState Account, reviewed in the May 2015 issue of the Civil War News.