Eyewitness Account of a Confederate Train Wreck

This monument at Fort Hill Cemetery, Cleveland, Tennessee, memorializes the 17 Confederate soldiers of the 33rd Alabama Volunteers, CSA, who died November 4, 1862, in a train wreck south of Cleveland, en route to Chattanooga, during the War Between the States.  In addition to the 17 dead, another 67 soldiers were injured in the accident.


The monument, listing the names of each of the 17 soldiers, was dedicated November 4, 1989, 127 years after the accident. It stands beside another, much older monument which marks the mass grave of 270 unknown Confederate soldiers.

At the time of the accident, the Alabama 33rd had just fought a battle in Kentucky and were on their way to Chattanooga.  There was no time for burials and the ded were laid in hastily dug graves beside the railroad tracks.  The marker for those graves was long since lost so the exact location is known only to God. 

A fascinating eyewitness account of the train wreck was written by a survivor, Pvt. Marvin L. Wheeler, Company A, 33rd Alabama Infantry Regiment. Pvt. Wheeler enlisted July 1862 at Stevenson, Alabama. He was wounded at Chickamauga. The following is taken from Pvt. Wheeler's memoirs:

"It was then the ladder part of October and first of November. Climatic conditions caused Knoxville to be the smokest place we were at, the smok from our green oak wood fires did not rise but settled and remained in a heavy black bank just above the earth and kept our eyes running water nearly all the time that we were not laying down, it being less dense just next to the earth, and we wer glad to leave there one morning early in November in box cars, a company in a car, with three days cooked rations of flour bread, fresh beef and bacon.

"The engines could pull but ten loaded box cars, say twenty four to thirty six feet long. The 33rd moved in the cars, that time by the left flank, the regimental staff officers or those who were along at the time and part of the baggage, the cooking utensils, axes and medicine chest, occupying the rear or tenth box and this time it fell to the lot of Company D, thought its place was not on the extreem right of the battalion, to occupy a box in the second section or train to our rear, the engine of which train frequently pushed our train up the grains when we stalled, as it did up the grade two or three miles south of Cleveland. And while running fast down grade our trained was wrecked about one or two p.m. the day we left Knoxville, south of Cleveland, killing nine or ten of Company G, one or two of Company E and of Company F and of Company H. Seventeen in all, whom we buried the next morning in a long ditch we dug on the southeast side of the railroad track, and built a worn rail fence around them. We pad put sixty seven crippled ones in box cars and sent them back to the hospital at Cleveland the evening of the wreck, soon after getting them out of it.

"Company B was in the box car next to the tender which was heaping full of split wood and it was supposed that a stick of wood dropped off the tender breaking the front axle under our car. At any rate all the wheels suddenling came out from under our car, causing a dreadful jar and clogged under the second car, which Company G Cooper's Co. from Daleville were in. Many were riding on top of the cars as was usual when moving by rail, and were shuck off like shaking peaches off a tree and badly jolted when they hit the ground.

"The coupling Company B's and Company G's boxes parted and the primitive engine carried Company B's box bouncing along without any wheels under it for two or three hundred yards, and it was the roughest riding we ever experienced. Those of Company B in the front end of the box got out at the doors on either side, some of the alighting on their heads.

"The company guns, accountrements, knapsacks and things soon all worked back to the rear end of the box in bouncing along would strike the rails it would us men and things a foot or more from the floor then when the floor would come in contact with us some would be beneath the pile and get bruised and mashed and were all banged up and badly frightened when the old fashioned engine stopped and after gettin out and find we had no broken bones we hurried back to where the cars were piled up in and on top of each other and assisted while men pried up or chopped to pieces the boxes in getting the crippled or dead out.

"We were delayed about twenty four hours, then we rode in a coal car to Chattanooga where we drew crackers and bacon."

Myra Inman, a local Cleveland woman whose Civil War diary has been published, made this entry on the day of the train wreck:

"Wednesday, 5: cloudy day, rained a little this morning. A gloom was spread over our town this morn. Caused by a sad accident which occurred 16 miles from here. The cable of a car broke, which caused 18 men to lose their lives, while 70 were wounded. There brought to the hospitals."

Fort Hill Cemetery, Cleveland, Tennessee
Left: Monument in memory of the 17 dead from the Alabama 33rd Volunteers train wreck.
Right:  Mass Grave Marker for 270 unknown Confederate dead.

Photos by J. Stephen Conn - click on image to enlarge

Tribute to the Confederate Battle Flag

THE FLAG
by Ellen Williams

I am the Confederate Battle Flag. My design is based upon the Saint Andrew's Cross of Scotland. Some prefer to call me the "Rebel Flag". Either name I will wear with honor. There is certainly no shame in being called Confederate, as the people who bore that same honorable title are remembered for their bravery on the field of battle, a Southern culture built upon hard work, and faith in God. As for the name "Rebel", it was the Revolutionary War soldier and outstanding pamphleteer, Thomas Paine, in his series "The American Crisis", said: "Let them call me Rebel and welcome -- I feel no concern from it". Because you see, it was George Washington and his Colonial Army who were the original Rebels. My boys in gray were the second to wear the name.

My soldiers were so proud of me and held me in high steem. Many songs and poems were written to praise me. Southern ladies especially loved me and often I was hand made by them and presented to Dixie's heroes at formal ceremonies. My folds still bare the brown stains of the blood of young heroes.

A poem by Abram Ryan said: "Once ten thousand hailed me gladly, and ten thousand wildly, madly, swore I should ever wave. For though conquered, they adore me! Love the cold dead hands that bore me! Weep for those that fell before me". I was carried high on Memorial Day, and Dixie was included in July 4th ceremonies. On Veteran's Day, my men marched along with those from other wars. I waved proudly beside state flags in front of every state building in the South. The great grandchildren of my soldiers put me in tag form on their vehicles and posted me proudly in front of their homes. At some universities, I became the rallying cry at athletic events. The descendents of my warriors remembered both them and me with honor and reverent pride.

But history began to be revised and things such as hard work, personal responsibility, chastity, civility, even Christian symbols such as the cross, the nativity, and the Ten Commandments became unpopular as society became more crude and course. I find that I, the once honored flag of the Confederacy have become the primary targets of the speech police. I have heard of this thing called "diversity". And if I understand it correctly, it means that this country is working toward the inclusion of and equal treatment for all ethnic groups. Then why is my group singled out not only for omission, but also for slander?

The saddest part for me is that a great number of Confederate descendents have let the liberal media world convince them to be ashamed of who they are. Others have become afraid to display me. How I wish they could have seen their grandfathers hold my colors proudly at Shiloh, or witnessed the calm resolve at Gettysburg as General Pickett sent them forward into cannon and minie balls while I floated above their brave heads. There were no cowards at these places, only the valiant willing to die for the Constitution and the protection of their beloved homes.

Perhaps my people need to be reminded of who they are and what I am. I am a Christian symbol based on the Saint Andrew's Cross, the native flag of Scotland. According to tradition Saint Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland was crucified on an X-shaped cross. The X-shaped cross in my colors and in the flag of Scotland is also the Greek letter chi which has long been a Christian abbreviation for "Christ". 19th century military tactics required perfect alignment in order to fire effectively upon an enemy. This rigid formation depended upon being able to align troops on the flag. Therefore, I was the rallying point for the "boys in gray". But, I was respected by the Union, too. Union troops received the Congressional Medal of Honor for the capture of a Confederate Battle Flag. Because of the confusion between the similarity of first national flag of the CSA and the national flag of the USA, General P. G. T. Beauregard and Joseph E. Johnston adopted my design for their battle flag. I was first known as the Southern Cross and today I am generally referred to as the Confederate Battle Flag. Even the gapping bullet holes that appeared in me after every engagement were pointed to with pride as being further indication of valor for the men of the unit. It further reminds me of the courage and dedication were needed. Confederate soldiers had only to look at the blood stains of their fallen comrades which the battle action had placed upon my colors.

Even in the 20th Century I have been carried into battles for freedom. As the United Nations fought to protect South Korea from the agression of North Korea, I flew over the front lines with the U. S. 7th Marines, 3rd Battalion, E Company ("The Civil War: Strange and Facinating Facts," by Burke Davis). When the TV cameras scanned the crowds witnessing the fall of a communist dictatorship in Eastern Europe with the destructuon of the Berlin Wall, I was seen waving in many hands in that sea of humanity. In Logar Province, Afghan Freedom fighters placed me on a pole into the barrel of a captured Soviet tank as they struggled to remove Russian control over their nation (1989, Southern Partisan Magazine). During Operation Desert Storm, a British unit took me with them into their zone of responsibility as they worked to lift the aggression of Iraq over Kuwait. Somehow across the years, I think I heard again, "Rebel Yells" in approval as brave men once more carried me into battle for freedom.

In the War for Southern Independence, Corporal T. J. Carlisle of the 37th Alabama Infantry said this about me: "Hail thou flag of the brave. We lift our hats in reverence as we behold the speechless but unmistakable evidence that you have passed through the firey ordeal of war in all its fury. We are proud of your history proud of your scars and venerate you for your age, trusting that your scared folds may be preserved for ages to come and when time and its inevitable ravages shall dissolve your sacred folds into dust, may the patriotic emotions which actuated us in that memorial struggle pervade American hearts and live in vivid memories of Southern heroism and Southern chivalry.

Why do my people not still love me? Why do they not display me on their government buildings and their businesses? Above all, why do they not fly me on the occasions of Confederate Memorial Day (fourth Monday in April), General Lee's birthday (third Monday in January) and President Davis's birthday (June third)? Perhaps they just need to become reacquainted with who I REALLY AM not who those who hate me SAY THAT I AM. Remember and honor me openly, my children. I was based on a Christian symbol; represented a fight for independence, carried by fearless men; and loved by your grandparents. I am The Confederate Battle Flag.

Fly me proudly. I am your inheritance.


About the Author: Ellen Williams, a retired secondary school teacher, is a reporter for the South Alabamian, a newspaper in Jackson, Alabama.

Photo by J. Stephen Conn, Confederate Cemetery, New Hope, Georgia

Big Confederate Gun Goes Home

 
By Brian Hicks
The Post and Courier
Charleston, South Carolina

MOBILE, ALABAMA - The Confederate sloop of war Alabama traveled the world during the Civil War, making life miserable for many mariners, but the feared raider never actually made it to the state from which it took its name.

But now, thanks to the efforts of Hunley project conservators, Mobile has one of the Alabama's big guns.

Scientists at the Warren Lasch Conservation Center this week sent one of the ship's cannons to the Alabama port city after a six-year restoration project. The 1862 gun, made in Liverpool, has been restored to look almost new, which was no easy feat.

Paul Mardikian, senior conservator on the Clemson-sponsored project, found human remains and 19th-century paint on the cannon as his crew worked to rehabilitate the weapon, which was pulled off the Alabama wreck in the English Channel.

"This is a beautiful gun with an incredible history. We are lucky it survived," Mardikian said. "When you look at this, and find the inscription that says, 'Liverpool, 1862,' and realize this gun was responsible for sinking battleships, it's what really makes this job incredible."

The ship was built in 1862 in England under an assumed name -- the British did not particularly want their alliance with the Confederacy known. Shortly after it was launched with Capt. Raphael Semmes at the helm, the Alabama became the most fearsome ship on the high seas. In two years, it claimed 60 ships worth more than $6 million combined.

Then it was caught by the American sloop of war Kearsarge coming out of Cherbourg, France, where it had stopped for repairs. The Union vessel sank the famous ship in about an hour. A French Navy mine hunter found the wreck in 1984.

See the complete story here: http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2010/feb/06/big-gun-goes-home/

Black Confederate, Dr. R. A. Gwynne, among the last Confederate Veterans of Alabama

This photo is of eight Confederate veterans on the steps of the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery, attending the last known Confederate veterans reunion in the state, September 27-28, 1944.

Standing, left to right: General William Banks of Houston, Texas; General W. W. Alexander of Rockhill, South Carolina; General J. D. Ford of Marshall, Texas; General T. H. Dowling of Atlanta, Georgia; General James W. Moore of Selma, Alabama; Colonel W. H. Culpepper of Atlanta, Georgia; and General W. M. Buck of Muskogee, Oklahoma. Seated in front is Dr. R. A. Gwynne of Birmingham, Alabama, the only African American to attend the reunion. This image was used and identified in the Alabama Historical Quarterly, Volume 6, page 6 (1944).

Here is a link to the photo in the Alabama Department of Archives and History:  http://216.226.178.196/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/photo&CISOPTR=3185&CISOBOX=1&REC=11

Jefferson Davis Statue, Montgomery, Alabama

This statue of Jefferson Davis stands in a prominent spot in front of the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery.  It was here that Davis was inagurated President of the Confederate State of America, February 18, 1861. The inscription reads:

JEFFERSON DAVIS

SOLDIER - SCHOLAR - STATESMAN

A GRADUATE OF WEST POINT

MILITARY ACADEMY, HE SERVED

THE UNITED STATES AS COLONEL

OF MISSISSIPPI VOLUNTEERS

MEXICAN WAR, MEMBER OF HOUSE

OF REPRESENTATIVES, SENATOR

AND AS SECRETARY OF WAR

INAUGURATED PRESIDENT OF

THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT

CONFEDERATE STATES OF

AMERICA, FEBRURAY 18, 1861

Photo by J. Stephen Conn

Historic Slave Market, Montgomery, Alabama

The Court Square and Fountain in Montgomery, Alabama, was erected by the City Council in 1885 over one of the oldest city wells, known as "Big Basin." The fountain, made in Paris, France, is topped by a statue of Hebe, Goddess of Youth and Cupbearer to the Gods. Visitors have an excellent view of the Alabama State Capitol at the opposite end of Dexter Avenue, the heart of downtown Montgomery.

This square served as the local Slave Market through the mid-19th century. It is reminiscent of old slave markets in other American cities such as Charleston, Boston, Providence and New York City.

At these markets, slaves of all ages were auctioned, along with land and livestock, standing in line to be inspected. Public posters advertised sales and included gender, approximate age, first name (slaves didn't always have last names), skill, price, complexion and owner's name.

Virtually all people today agree that slavery was an unconscionable evil. Yet many are unaware that it was more than just a white-owner versus black-slave institution. A large number of free Negros owned slaves, in fact, in numbers disproportionate to their representation in society at large. For example, in New Orleans alone over 3,000 free Negros, 28% of the total in that city, owned slaves. Altogether, only 4.8 percent of southerners were slave owners, including both black and white.

The issue was complicated farther by the fact that it was not uncommon for slaves to have straight sandy hair, blue eyes and fair complexions. Some were of as little as 1/64th African decent - or 98.4% white.

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here are a couple of websites to get you started if you want to learn more about this fascinating subject:

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Black Slaveowners: http://americancivilwar.com/authors/black_slaveowners.htm

White Slaves: http://multiracial.com/site/content/view/460/27/

Walker County Confederate Monument, Jasper, Alabama

In towns and cities throughout the southern United States one will find monuments to the Confederate States of America, usually in the most prominent spot in the county, like this one which stands in front of the Walker County Courthouse, Jasper, Alabama. It was erected in 1907 as a community project spearheaded by the Jasper Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.

This monument bears a likeness of a cavalry soldier on the left hand side and another likeness of an infantry soldier on the right, depicting the type of companies and regiments that were recruited in Walker County in the War for Southern Independence. A third likeness of a Confederate soldier stands atop the monument.

The inscription on the front of the monument reflects the sentiments of the community:

FURL THAT BANNER!

TRUE TIS' GORY,

YET' TIS WREATHED AROUND WITH GLORY,

AND' TWILL LIVE IN SONG AND STORY,

THOUGH ITS FOLDS ARE IN THE DUST.

On the left side of monument the inscription reads:

THEIR SHIVERED SWORDS ARE RED WITH RUST,

THEIR PLUMED HEADS ARE BOWED,

THEIR HAUGHTY BANNER TRAILED IN DUST,

IS NOW THEIR MARTIAL SHROUD

And on the right side:

IN MEMORY OF

OUR BRAVE SOLDIERS,

WHO WORE THE GRAY,

THEY FOUGHT FOR YOU AND ME

Chiseled in stone on the back of the monument is the seal of the sovereign state of Alabama, along with this quatrain:

HOW SLEEP THE BRAVE WHO SINK TO REST,

BY ALL THEIR COUNTRY'S WISHES BLEST

A wreath which depicts the Confederate Battle Flag was lying at the front base of the monument on the day I took these photos. It is a sign that the "Lost Cause" of the Confederacy has not been forgotten by the good people of Alabama.

The Rape of Athens, Alabama

When the sacking and plundering of southern towns, homes and farms of civilians during the War Between the States is mentioned, it is the atrocities of better known generals such as Sheridan and Sherman which get the attention. Actually, the despicable war crimes of Union soldiers against Confederate civilians was much,much more widespread. The north's policy of "total war" against the South, without mercy for women, children, the elderly, black or white, was sanctioned by the despot Abraham Lincoln and carried out by a large number of his Union officers.

Athens Alabama is one case in point. Most Americans have never read about it in their sugar coated, northern written, history books, yet Athens is only one of of countless towns that experienced the "war is hell" tactics of the invading Yankee hoards. The people of Athens have not forgotten, as the historical marker in front of the Limestone County courthouse attests.

"On May 2, 1862, Union troops of 19th and 24th Illinois and the 37th Indiana Regiments commanded by Col. John Basil Turchin went on a rampage through the town. They looted and plundered stores and homes, stealing clothing, jewelry and anything of value, destroying what they didn't want. For months afterward the soldiers stabled their horses in some of the town's churches, burned the pews for firewood and destroyed the interiors...."

The Athens business district was laid waste. Union troops broke into the drugstore of William S. Allen and destroyed surgical and dental instruments as well as his medical library. The wanton soldiers even took parts of human skeletons from the medical office. They reduced to ruins the interior of Peterson Tanner and Sons Dry Goods and stole $3,000 worth of goods from Madison Thompson's grocery store. After reducing the business district to ruins, the Federal invaders sacked and plundered the private homes of defenseless civilians. Numerous rapes were reported, many of the victims being young black girls.

Colonel Turchin, born Ivan Vasillevitch Turchinoff in Russia, was scheduled to be court-martialed in Huntsville for encouraging these disgusting war crimes. However, when word of the impending trial reached the ears of President Abraham Lincoln, he halted the court-martial one day before it was to be held and promoted the offending Colonel to the rank of Brigadier General. Lincoln's rewarding of such war crimes had the desired effect of increasing violence and hostilities by the Yankee armies against southern civilians, which escalated throughout the War.

A Historical Sign that opened my Eyes

When a person sets out on a quest to visit each of the 3,141 counties or their equivilents in the United States, as I am doing, he never knows what unexpected discoveries he may make along the way.

This simple interpretative sign at Tannehill Historical State Park in Alabama was a catalyst that made a deep and lasting impact on my life. When I first read it several years ago I would never have imagined the quest for knowledge on which it would lead me.

I had read countless other such signs during my travels, but for some unknown reason this one particular sign on that day resonated deeply with me - especially the description of actions taken by Union troops from Iowa who were here during the latter days of the War Between the States:

"... they torched all the adjacent factory buildings, slave cabins, a large gristmill and tannery and a storehouse for food and supplies. In the fire Tannehill’s workforce of over 500 slaves and white mechanics were scattered and displaced."

Whoa, I thought! The Yankees burned the slave cabins along with those of the white workers? Hundreds of people were left with no shelter, no food, and nowhere to go?

Although I grew up in the South, I had been told all my life that the Union troops marched south to free the slaves. If that were so, then why did the Northerners burn the slaves out, leaving them destitute, homeless and hungry. Elsewhere on the grounds of the Tannehill Historical State Park I saw a large patch of woods, marked as the site of scores of slave cabins which the Yankees had ransacked, plundered and then destroyed - cabins that would have been equal to those of my own Irish and Cherokee ancestors in Alabama and Georgia during the same era.

I began to make the connection to other discoveries from my travels, such as a monument to black Confederate soldiers in Mississippi and an antebellum plantation in Louisiana owned by a black slaveholder. I had previously dismissed such things as curious flukes, but now I was beginning to see a pattern which contradicted most of what I had always assumed I knew about the War Between the States.

It occurred to me that somebody was lying about what really happened during the so called Civil War, and I determined to find out the truth. It's not that I didn't know American History. I am better read and know much more history than the average person. But when it came to the War Between the States, I had learned primarily only the version of that conflict which was written by the victors, the North, and not the supressed Southern side of the story.

During the years since that fateful day I have spent thousands of hours studying about the Confederacy, the causes of secession, and the War Between the States. As I have read scores of books and have continued to visit hundreds of historical sites I looked for clues to the real story, unvarnished by political correctness. To say that the things I have learned have been an eyeopener is an understatement.

That historical sign at Tannehill State Park in Alabama was a catalyst in the chain of events that brought me to the point of beginning this blog. In the coming weeks and months I will continue sharing many more of the amazing discoveries I have made about the Confederate States of America.

NAACP Objects to Azalea Trail Maids at Obama Inaugural

These beautiful young ladies, many of them from minority ethnicities, are being criticized by the NAACP, which says they are a reminder of slavery. An official NAACP spokesman says the Azalea Trail Maids will become the "laughing stock of the Inauguration." I say the NAACP has lost all relevancy and such absurd claims make them the true laughing stock.

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Photo from the official Presidential Inaugural Committee website

Montgomery, Ala. (WSFA) -- They're part of a long standing tradition that will soon become a part of Presidential history.

The head of the Alabama NAACP, however, wants Mobile's Azalea Trail Maids to stay home on Inauguration Day, claiming the group reminds him of slavery.

"These are not just regular costumes. These are the costumes that remind someone of the plantation in Gone with the Wind," Edward Vaughn said in a phone interview.

Vaughn went on to say the group would be the laughing stock of the Inauguration. County leaders say nothing could be further from the truth.

"We want everyone to know that these young ladies do not need to be identified with slavery," said Mobile County Commissioner Stephen Nodine.

"I don't see what the dresses have to do with racism. I don't see it. It's just a regular dress to me. Just a dress they wore back in the day," said Carolyn Tius of Montgomery.

Organizers stand behind the tradition, but opponents say tradition is the problem.
"We needed something that could show Alabama's great progress rather than something that shows a shameful past," Vaughn said.


See the original story and television clip here: http://www.wsfa.com/Global/story.asp?S=9655036&nav=menu33_2

Cannons from Confederate Raider CSS Alabama Preserved

Associated Press
From the Ledger-Enquirer.com

CHARLESTON, S.C. --After more than eight years of work, scientists say two cannons from the Confederate raider CSS Alabama have been preserved at the same lab conserving another Civil War artifact, the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley.

Workers scraped away hardened sediment on the 32-pound, smooth bore cannons each weighing about 5 tons. The cannons were also soaked in chemicals to leech out sea salts.
In appreciation for the work, the Navy, which owns the cannons, may allow one to be displayed at a museum which will one day display the hand-cranked Hunley, The Post and Courier of Charleston reported Friday.

"It will be a great addition to the Hunley museum because we want it to be a full Southern Maritime museum," said Randy Burbage, a member of the South Carolina Hunley Commission.
The Alabama was built in Liverpool, England, for the Confederacy.

During the 22 months it sailed, its crew boarded 447 vessels including 65 Union merchant vessels and took 2,000 prisoners, according to the CSS Alabama Association.

The Alabama was finally caught by the USS Kearsage and sank on June 11, 1864, following a battle in the English Channel off Cherbourg, France, where the Alabama was awaiting repairs.

The wreck of the Alabama was found in 1984 and the two cannons were raised in 2000. On one cannon scientists found fragments of human jawbone, thought to be from a crewman.

There's more. For the full story go to: http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/251/story/564566.html

Confederate Veteran John Wesley Colquett Honored

By Curtis Thomasson
Andalusia Star-News

ANDALUSIA, ALABAMA - A memorial service was held in honor of Confederate Veteran John Wesley Colquett on Saturday, November 15, at his grave site in the historic Bullock Community Cemetery, located adjacent to the Friendship Baptist Church in the Southern area of Crenshaw County. The Colquett family requested that the Covington Rifles Camp of the Sons of Confederate Veterans assist them in paying tribute to their ancestor and unveiling a grave marker designating his service.

In addition to the grave of John Wesley Colquett, there are 18 others in this cemetery for Confederate Veterans. A local citizen of the area, Louise Marler, placed Confederate Battle Flags at the graves of each of these prior to the dedication ceremony.

More than 100 descendants of John Wesley Colquett along with friends and members of Sons of Confederate Veterans, United Daughters of the Confederacy and Confederate Reenactors gathered for the historical occasion. Following a military call for attention, Curtis Thomasson, commander of the Covington Rifles who served as emcee for the program, recognized Jeanine Bozeman, great granddaughter of the veteran, to welcome those in attendance. Lex Colquett, a great great grandson voiced the invocation.

Curtis Thomasson presented opening comments expressing the pleasure of the Covington Rifles to be assisting in the program and the significance of honoring one’s Confederate ancestor and heritage through this project. He briefly described the five flags of the Confederacy, which formed the background for the ceremony and then led the group in saluting the Confederate Flag. This was followed by Rex Harrison, great great grandson, leading the group in singing “Dixie.”

William Harrison, another great great grandson, presented a brief sketch of the veteran’s life and service in the Confederate Army. Most appropriately, a great great great grandson, Jon Wesley Colquett, who was named for the ancestor, unveiled the new Confederate marker. Then two great great great great grandsons, Trey and Walt Spurlin, posted two small Confederate Battle Flags at the headstone. Angela Colquett Nelson, great great granddaughter, who coordinated the occasion, placed a memorial wreath next to the grave marker.

Bob McLendon, Commander of the SCV Camp in Troy, gave a brief report from the book which he has written on the history of the 53rd Alabama Partisan Rangers. He was wearing a uniform typical of those worn by men in the unit such as the Colquett brothers. Bob made his books available for sale during the fellowship following the ceremony.

Next, three Confederate reenactors, Bob McLendon, Dallas Hudson, and Joe Rich, fired a traditional three-gun military salute. They then furled the Confederate Battle Flag, and the program was concluded with the playing of “Taps” by Straughn High School Bandsman Erica Zigler.

Following the taking of pictures, those in attendance were invited to fellowship and refreshments in the church’s fellowship room. There were displays of family history and photos along with a guest registry book.

The honored veteran, John Wesley Colquett was born April 22, 1846, in Monticello, Pike County, Alabama. His parents were William Bethea and Mary (Miles) Colquett, natives of South Carolina who moved to Alabama during the 1830s. William Bethea Colquett was a prominent physician and citizen in the Bullock community. He had a large house on the Old Three Notch Road next door to his son, John Wesley. He was responsible for founding the Bullock School, an academy located adjacent to the Friendship Church.

As the War Between the States advanced, the rural community of Bullock became more and more affected. John Wesley Colquett along with many men responded to the call for volunteers. In November 1862, John Wesley enlisted at the age of 16 years. He was assigned to Company H, 53rd Regiment of the Alabama Partisan Rangers. He served with this unit until the end of the war in 1865.

There's more. For the full story go to: http://www.andalusiastarnews.com/news/2008/dec/06/confederate-vet-john-wesley-colquett-honored-satur/