Confederate Soldiers Memorial, Rockingham
The 14 feet in height monument commemorates the Confederate soldiers of the Civil War. The monument depicts a Confederate flag carved in relief on the monument's front as well as a sword surrounded by a wreath carved in relief on the monument's reverse.
On September 16, 2020 the monument was removed from Harrington Square and placed in storage until the site at the Richmond County Veterans Memorial Park could be prepared at which time it was re-erected.
Images of the current location:
Confederate Monument at the new location |
Rear view |
View with flagpoles |
Distant view of the memorial |
View of the Memorial Park with several monuments and memorials |
Far-off view of the Memorial Park
Front: 1861 1865 / ERECTED IN 1930, BY THE PEE DEE GUARDS / CHAPTER OF THE UNITED DAUGHTERS / OF THE CONFEDERACY OF RICHMOND / COUNTY, IN LOVING MEMORY OF OUR / CONFEDERATE SOLDIERS
Rear: 1861 1865 / LEST WE FORGET
Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4203
November 14, 1930
34.935290 , -79.778010
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"Confederate Soldiers Memorial, Rockingham, Richmond County," The Historical Marker Database, HMdb.org (accessed August 4, 2014) Link
Butler, Douglas J. North Carolina Civil War Monuments, An Illustrated History, (Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2013), 162, 205-206, 225
Hardy, Michael C. Remembering North Carolina’s Confederates, (Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2006)
Richmond County Historical Society. "History of Richmond County", rchs-nc.net, (accessed October 23, 2017) Link
Stone, Gavin. “City Removes Confederate Monument,” Daily Journal (Rockingham, NC), September 16, 2020, yourdailyjournal.com, (accessed September 20, 2020 Link
Testor, Brandon and Stone, Gavin. “Confederate Monument to Be Moved to VFW Memorial Park,” Daily Journal (Rockingham, NC), August 17, 2020, yourdailyjournal.com, (accessed September 6, 2020) Link
Testor, Brandon. “Rockingham to Remove Confederate Monument,” Daily Journal (Rockingham, NC), yourdailyjournal.com, August 11, 2020, (accessed September 6, 2020) Link
“Confederate Monument Unveiled,” Rockingham Post-Dispatch (Rockingham, NC), November 20, 1930
Yes
Pink granite
Pee Dee Guards Chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy of Richmond County
On the day of the dedication, World War I veterans and local Boy Scouts led the march to the old Courthouse Square where Mrs. R.T. Nichols, local UDC president, presided over the ceremony. Mrs. George P. Entwistle presented the monument which was accepted by W. S. Thompson prior to former Governor Cameron Morrison giving the featured address. The monument was unveiled by a five-year-old relative of one of the first volunteers of Richmond County, Ridson Thomas Nicholas, Jr. Interspersed during the exercises was music “by the young negro boys from the Morrison Training School.” Governor Morrison was principal in creating funding for the school and it was named in his honor. It was felt appropriate that the boys provide the music.
Following the massacre of nine African Americans in a church in Charleston, South Carolina on June 17, 2015 by white supremacist Dylann Roof, Americans, especially southerners, have reflected on and argued over the historical legacy of slavery, the Civil War, the Confederacy, and white supremacy. Monuments have been a particular focus of these debates and controversies, especially after the death of a counter-protester, Heather Heyer, at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in August 2017 and after President Donald Trump expressed his opposition to the removal of Confederate memorials. Despite laws in many southern states intended to prevent or impede the removal or relocation of historical monuments, protesters and local community leaders have removed or relocated controversial monuments associated with slavery, the Confederacy, and white supremacy. The pace of the removal of controversial monuments accelerated sharply in 2020, following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Against the backdrop of protests against police brutality and white supremacy across the nation, local authorities in many communities in North Carolina removed and/or relocated monuments that were the focus of civil unrest.
On August 11, 2020 Rockingham City Manager Monty Crump, with no objections from City Council, initiated the “administrative removal” of the Confederate monument located in the city’s downtown at Harrington Square. Crump stated that the monument would be stored until its ownership could be determined or until another party offered to accept it. A week later it was announced that the monument would be relocated to the Richmond County Veterans Memorial Park located across the street from Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 4203. The offer to take the monument was initiated by Post 4203 Senior Vice Commander Tim Grooms and approved by the VFW post board and Victor Latourneaut, the North Carolina state VFW commander. Considerations for the city to accept the offer were that a veterans memorial park was fitting, on a well maintained private property, and had easy access, open to the public.
On September 16, 2020 the monument was removed from Harrington Square and placed in storage until the site at the Richmond County Veterans Memorial Park could be prepared at which time it was re-erected.
The memorial is located at the Richmond County Veterans Memorial Park across the street from Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 4203, at 106 Old River Rd., Rockingham, NC.
The Richmond County Veterans Memorial Park is an open lawn with wooded backdrop and scattered trees near the entry walkway. Nine other memorials stand in the park. Also present are several commemorative benches, flagpoles, plaques and over a dozen rows of crosses with commemorative stones that fill much of the space.
Until September 16, 2020, the monument stood at the intersection of Lee Street and West Washington Street in a courtyard area sitting between two portions of West Washington Street. The monument was on the northern portion of the courtyard and faced south towards a fountain. It was surrounded by benches, trees, and grass areas. Geo coordinates for the former location -- 35.718440 , -79.178370.
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