Commission a New Work for Arlington's Confederate Circle

December, 2025

Washington — The ugly memorial statue removed two years ago from the Confederate Circle of graves at Arlington National Cemetery is now, by order of the Secretary of Defense, to be re-installed where it was originally placed in 1914.  Its granite base is still intact.  But the order may be in violation of an act of Congress, so it is not clear what will happen next.  

The memorial is ugly only in the sense it seriously misrepresented the history of the Civil War, as it incorporated Lost Cause propaganda.  In other respects, it remains a remarkable work of art.  Descendants of the sculptor, Moses Ezekiel, would like it to be placed at VMI, which Ezekiel attended and where another work of his is located.  VMI has agreed.

The post-war idea of a Confederate Circle at Arlington was to promote reconciliation, in the same spirit that Lincoln pardoned Confederate soldiers at war's end.  A good solution to the current problem would be to commission a new statue to do just that, a work true to history with no misrepresentations and no political agenda.  

There is a moment in history that could be memorialized for the purpose.  In May of 1865, a month after Appomattox and soon after Lincoln's assassination, Union General Edward Canby met Confederate General Richard Taylor at Citronelle, a few miles north of Mobile, to formalize the end of the war for all remaining Confederate troops east of the Mississippi.  Their meeting was cordial.  Canby arranged a luncheon and brought a military band.  Taylor wrote of his objective for the occasion:

"We could only secure honorable interment for the remains of our cause."   

Note that Taylor was securing an honorable interment for the Confederate cause, just as the Confederate Circle honorably inters Confederate soldiers.  Then he recounted this remarkable story:

"The air of 'Hail Columbia', which the band in attendance struck up. was instantly changed by Canby's order to that of 'Dixie', but I insisted on the first, and expressed a hope that Columbia would be again a happy land..." — General Richard Taylor. 

When Taylor insisted on "Hail Columbia" instead of "Dixie", he did it in the hope of a reconciled, happy land.  Taylor was not simply a Confederate general, he was one of its best battlefield commanders, the son of Zachary Taylor and the brother-in-law of Jefferson Davis.  

His hope at that moment, and Canby's, is worthy of memorializing.   

If a commission for a statue of reconciliation were offered, it should provide an option for the artist to include a historically accurate portrayal of black people, as this was the major problem with the 1914 work. By General Taylor's own account, there were two black men able to provide motive power to a railway hand-car to transport him to the event at Citronelle.  They are potential subjects not only for historical accuracy but for symbolism.  Rather than depicting blacks sending soldiers off to war, as in the 1914 statue, these men transport a war-weary general toward making peace.  

A new statue dedicated entirely to reconciliation, leaving their ancestors to rest in peace, would please at least some, and perhaps many, descendants of the soldiers buried in the Confederate Circle.  As a direct descendant of Confederate veterans myself, I would welcome it, in any worthy medium.   

    

 

Ancestors in The American Revolution

December, 2025

Washington — A new twelve-hour documentary, "The American Revolution," is spellbinding in the sense that it continually invites viewers to ask deeper questions about the war, how it was fought, and by whom.  

That would be by our own ancestors.   The following list identifies several who served in the patriot cause, with research assistance from AI (in italics) when it corroborates family genealogical and other evidence from our Susan Wimer (1860-1941) ancestry line in the family tree.  She was born in Virginia before the Civil War and died in Red Willow County, Nebraska, where my father was born. 

After watching "The American Revolution," it is especially gratifying to see ancestors who fought with Greene and Lafayette against the brutal Tarleton and prevailed over Cornwallis at Yorktown.  

John L. Smith 

John L. Smith (1698-1783), seventh great-grandfather, emigrated from Ireland and served as a British officer in the French and Indian War under George Washington. Captain Smith led the defense of Fort Vause in southwest Virginia in 1756 but was captured and later exchanged in Canada for French prisoners. 

In the Revolutionary War, he joined a volunteer cavalry corps under patriot General Thomas Nelson in 1777, serving as Sergeant Major for a period. He also led efforts against Tory groups in regions like Lost River, rallying about 400 men and coordinating with generals like Daniel Morgan to suppress these threats. His service primarily focused on militia command, internal security, and prisoner management during the Revolutionary War.

John L. Smith served as a Major General of the 3rd Division Virginia Militia. He commanded the militia in Frederick County, Virginia, and was responsible for guarding and superintending prisoners of war sent to Winchester. This involved organizing militia drafts to provide guards, recruiting men, and ensuring the prisoners' custody according to orders from the Virginia Council of Safety and Governor Patrick Henry. He held this position throughout the war and was active in militia leadership and suppression of Tory uprisings. 

Robert Eastham

Sixth great-grandfather Robert Eastham (1706-1790) of Halifax County, Virginia, served as a colonel in the militia during the Revolutionary War, primarily in organizational and county-level defense roles rather than major field commands. He commanded Halifax County militia units, focusing on local security, recruitment, and supply efforts to support Continental forces in the Southern theater.​

Eastham contributed to provisioning campaigns, including furnishing cattle and supplies for American troops under Lafayette and Greene in 1781. His company guarded against Loyalist threats and participated in regional mobilizations. 

Peter Hull

Peter Hull (1733-1813), fifth grand-uncle, was born in Bad Kreuznach, Germany.  His father, Peter Thomas Hull, is a sixth great-grandfather and his sister, Catherine Hull Zickafoose, is a fifth great grandmother.

Captain Peter Hull led troops under General Lafayette during the Virginia Campaign in 1781. Hull commanded a troop of cavalry in the Augusta County militia and participated in the Yorktown campaign, which was part of Lafayette's overall military efforts during that year. His militia company was involved in actions such as pursuing British cavalry under Tarleton and fighting at key engagements in Virginia during Lafayette's campaign to contain Cornwallis and secure victory for the American cause. Records confirm Hull's leadership role in the Augusta County militia and his active service under Lafayette's command in the final phase of the Revolutionary War in Virginia.

Captain Hull fought in the Battle of Green Springs in Virginia in 1781. His company from the Augusta County militia was involved in this engagement, which was part of the attempts to repel British forces under Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton.

The Battle of Green Spring occurred on July 6, 1781, near Green Spring Plantation in James City County, Virginia. It was an ambush set by British forces under Earl Charles Cornwallis against American troops led by the Marquis de Lafayette. American advance units, commanded by Brigadier General "Mad" Anthony Wayne, were nearly trapped while attempting to harass the British rear guard during their crossing of the James River. The battle ended with an American retreat after a bold bayonet charge, but it delayed British movements and boosted American morale ahead of Yorktown.

Hull's company, along with other Augusta militia units, was positioned to contest the British baggage train and pickets, engaging in extended skirmishes that lasted nearly two hours. They fired on British officers and supported Wayne's riflemen in picking off enemy leaders before the main British assault with artillery and infantry. When the trap sprung around 5 p.m., Hull's men joined the bayonet charge to cover the retreat, abandoning some artillery but avoiding encirclement. No specific casualties for Hull's company are detailed, but overall American losses were about 140, including 28 killed, with the militia playing a key role in the escape.

Leonard Simmons

Leonard Simmons (1738-1808), fifth great-grandfather, was a private with Captain Hull's company.

Leonard Simmons of Augusta County militia was present at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in 1781 as part of the Virginia militia forces serving under General Nathanael Greene and Lafayette. Muster rolls from Captain Peter Hull's company, to which Leonard Simmons belonged, list him as a private, indicating his participation in the militia forces at that battle.

In March 1781, militia companies from Augusta County assembled under commander Colonel Moffett and marched through Lynchburg, Virginia, to Guilford County, North Carolina, where they fought at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse alongside Lafayette’s forces. These Augusta County militia units were involved in engagements to block British movements and protect Virginia during Lafayette’s efforts to contain Cornwallis’ troops. Later, Augusta County militia companies joined the larger Continental Army under Washington for the Siege of Yorktown, the final decisive campaign in Virginia.

Henry Simmons 

Captain Henry Simmons (1760-1825), fourth great-grandfather, of Augusta, Highland, and Pendleton County, Virginia, and son of Leonard Simmons, was attached to militia companies under various Virginia militia leaders, including Captain Peter Hull's company in Augusta County. He served in the Virginia militia which operated both locally and in coordination with Continental forces during the Revolutionary War. Militia units like his were often assigned to frontier defense, local security, and sometimes to larger campaigns such as those involving General Nathanael Greene's Southern campaign, although Simmons himself was primarily recorded in militia roles tied to Augusta County and surrounding areas. His unit would have been part of larger Virginia militia battalions mobilized for regional defense and engagement.

Michael Hoover

Michael Hoover (1753-1842), fourth great-grandfather from Augusta county, Virginia, private Hoover's service included expeditions against Native American forces on the Monongahela River and a drafted tour where he marched to Richmond, Virginia, to pursue Tories, capturing a few who surrendered their arms after about three weeks; he provided his own horse for this service.

Philip Wimer

Philip Wimer (1757-1839), fourth great-grandfather, born in Frankfurt, Germany, served in the Virginia Militia cavalry during the Revolutionary War, led by Captain Peter Hull of Augusta County. Philip Wimer was present at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse with Virginia militia forces on March 15, 1781, He participated in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781, which was a decisive victory leading to the British surrender and American independence. Philip Wimer was originally sold into indentured servitude but after seven years joined the militia and fought on the Patriot side. 

The war deeds of these men, above, however praiseworthy, do not necessarily signify that they lived exemplary lives in other capacities and endeavors.  Many lived in tumult, judged by records left hehind.  Of those listed, John L. Smith seems to deserve a closer look for an ancestor of whom we can be unequivocally proud.   To be continued.