Ringgold, Ga., Set to Unveil Statue of Confederate Maj. Gen. Patrick Ronayne Cleburne, To Coincide with Civil War's 150th Anniversary

In recent years there has been a great deal of distaste at the mention of the word "confederate" and its connotations of slavery and the horrific mistreatment of blacks in the United States, particularly in the South. So, I was naturally taken aback when I learned that a statue honoring Maj. Gen. Patrick Ronayne Cleburne is set to be unveiled in Ringgold, Ga. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, this unveiling represents a seven-year dream of some history buffs who believe that he deserves some belated honors. The statute is the brainchild of Mauriel Joslyn, a writer from Sparta who edited a book on Cleburne. I guess this is meant, in part, to bring tourists to the obscure small town.

The 700-pound bronze statue of Confederate General Patrick Cleburne, which cost $120,000, is being stored in the Ringgold Telephone Company’s warehouse. The town plans to put the statue up during a festival next fall. The statue almost was not finished because for years organizers couldn’t scratch up the money to pay the sculptor.

With the Civil War’s 150th anniversary in 2011, communities across the South are planning gatherings and spiffing up battlefields in hopes of drawing tourist dollars. Between Chattanooga and Atlanta, towns where blue and gray fought are trying to build things for people to see besides reading roadside markers. Ringgold is banking on one of the few new statues to a Confederate being built anywhere and a festival next fall to unveil it. In this little town, the Army of Tennessee general won his greatest victory. Source: Atlanta Journal Constitution

I had to do a little research of my own to understand who Patrick Cleburne was. It seems that he had a very complicated history. He was an Irish immigrant who fought on the losing side of many major battles in which he fought. He was, indeed, a die-hard supporter of the South, but he never owned slaves and actually called for blacks to earn their freedom if they fought for the Confederacy. Of course, the other generals hated the idea and he become somewhat of an outcast, if you will. Many historians believe his plan cost him promotions.

Patrick Cleburne became the highest-ranking Irish-born officer in American military history, attaining the rank of major general. He entered the Civil War as commander of the Yell Rifles, which became part of the First Arkansas Volunteer Infantry Regiment. He became a drugstore owner and lawyer in his new Arkansas hometown of Helena (Phillips County) and was a delegate to the Democratic Convention in 1858.

On November 5, 1849, Cleburne, his older sister Anne, and brothers William and Joseph boarded the Bridgetown for America and landed in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Christmas Day. Employment was a priority, and the siblings headed up the Mississippi River looking for work. Patrick found a job as a druggist at Nash and Grant’s Drugstore in Helena after arriving in April 1850. Immediately following his five-year wait for naturalization, he passed the Arkansas bar examination in 1856. He supported law partner Thomas Hindman in his bid for the Senate against Know-Nothing candidate W. D. Rice. Cleburne was wounded when Rice ambushed him and Hindman in a Helena street in 1856.

Cleburne joined many social clubs and affiliations. His politics mirrored Arkansas’s Southern stance, and he joined the Democratic Party in 1855 during their fight against the Know-Nothing party in the 1856 elections. Cleburne never owned slaves and voiced his opposition to the institution, yet he valued the right and desire of a section of the country to govern itself. Much of his philosophy was based on witnessing the Irish fight for independence. This acceptance endeared him to the Arkansans whom he would command in battle. Source: Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture

Cleburne died while leading a charge on the Union breastworks on November 30, 1864, in Franklin, Tennessee. Though his past was not as controversial as others, putting up a Confederate statue could spark some controversy, especially in an age in which the Confederate symbols are hotly challenged across the South. They are an offensive reminder of slavery, a bloodstain on America's history. Ringgold is no stranger to controversy. Black residents in the predominantly white town objected to the Confederate battle flag being flown over the town depot. The flag was taken down. Though there are some who would trek to Ringgold to view this statue, personally, I would not waste my time. This statue will not provide the windfall that the town is banking on, whether Cleburne was a moderate or not.