Documenting the American South

Monument Name

Veterans Memorial, Fallston

Type

War Memorial

Subjects

Veterans of Multiple Wars

City

Fallston

County

Cleveland

Description

This memorial stands in honor and memory of Fallston-area residents who served in the U.S. armed forces. It is created as a place to reflect and read the names of approximately 500 citizens who sacrificed their lives in various wars (World War I, World War II, Vietnam, Korean War, the Gulf War, Afghanistan, Iraq). The names are engraved on five slabs.

Images: Dedication inscription | Lt. Falls inscription | Vietnam War slab

Inscription

Front, middle marker: DEDICATED / MAY 21, 2005 / AMERICAN LEGION / W.R. GARY POST 527 / FALLSTON / NORTH CAROLINA / WE DID IT / NOT FOR GLORY / BUT FOR GOD, / COUNTRY AND / EACH OTHER / FOREVER BROTHERS / AND SISTERS Back, middle marker: LT. THOMAS DICKSON / FALLS / 555TH REG. NCT CSA / AT AGE 19 / SET HIGH WATER MARK / UNDER HEAVY FIRE FOR / THE CONFEDERACY DURING / PICKETTS CHARGE / JULY 3, 1863 / GETTYSBURG. PA. / WAS CAPTURED POW

Dedication Date

May 10, 2005

Decade

2000s

Supporting Sources

"Fallston Veterans Memorial," Memorial Day Foundation, http://www.memorialdayfoundation.org, (accessed May 24, 2015) Link

"Fallston Veterans Memorial," The Historical Marker Database, HMdb.com, (accessed May 24, 2015) Link

Allen, Wade. “Veterans' memorial park provides place to gather, remember those who served”, shelbystar.com (Cleveland County, N.C.), May 24, 2015 Link

Public Site

Yes

Materials & Techniques

Granite

Sponsors

American Legion W.R. Gary Post

Monument Cost

$25,000

Subject Notes

Tommy Ledford and Chuck Knight are charter members of American Legion W.R. Gary Post 527, of Fallston. They helped raise $25,000 to erect the veterans’ memorial park a decade ago. It honors veterans, living or dead, from the Fallston school district area who served. The area runs from north of the Shelby city limits to the Belwood community, Ledford said.

Location

The Veterans Memorial is located behind the post office area (771 E Stage Coach Trail, Fallston, NC 28042), at the intersection of Friendship Drive and Smith Drive.

Landscape

The memorial sits on a circular pavement area, surrounded by grass, benches and other buildings.

Post Dedication Use

The memorial park is used to celebrate Memorial days and other holidays. On May 25, 2015, ten years after the Memorial's unveiling, people started gathering around 10 a.m., a ceremony began an hour later, featuring the laying of a memorial wreath, a brief service by a chaplain, and a 21-gun salute by the American Legion W.R. Gary Post 527, of Fallston.