Disinterring and reburying Civil War Soldiers

[Christine]

Just saw this and wondered what you all think about it.

"The bodies of 40 Confederate soldiers unearthed in the last two months will have a proper memorial around 150 years after they fought during the Civil War.

Ted Delaney, the assistant director of Old City Cemetery in Lynchburg Virginia, along with a team of archeologists also found the areas where Union Soldiers were buried and then disinterred in 1866. . .

In early April the team dug a 45-by-10 foot trench to dig up the bodies and now face the challenge of identifying each grave and giving them the recognition they deserve.

'Our goal is to put a marker at each grave space to identify the soldier and note when he died and his military unit,' said Delaney

'The undertaker's notes are so detailed and complete,' he added, confident that at least 80 soldiers would be properly identified."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...orial.html

Lots of my husband's confederate ancestors are buried in unknown graves, but I'm not sure how I feel about this. If the undertaker's notes are so complete why do they need to dig them up and then rebury them? Why couldn't they just put up a monument to all of them?

Maybe I'm missing something here.

[Eva Elisabeth]

I, too, think a named grave will give each the recognition he deserves and show more respect to each of them than a collective monumentum, not just as one soldier, but also as a private person as well as to his family.

[HerbS]

Oh boy,what is next for them to do?

[Jim Page]

Herb, I suspect someone in Washington right now is drafting legislation to rearrange Arlington Cemetery so the graves are arranged alphabetically.

--Jim

[BettyO]

Quote:I, too, think a named grave will give each the recognition he deserves and show more respect to each of them than a collective monumentum, not just as one soldier, but also as a private person as well as to his family.

I wholeheartedly agree. These people deserve recognition and remembrance. They were human beings - they had (and probably STILL have) family. They deserve some credit for that. All people deserve recognition and respect. It's the decent thing to do; regardless of what side they fought on.

One interesting side note which I found was that when the conspirators were dug up from Wareroom One; when the burial trench was opened and the coffins were revealed, it was noted in one paper that the "workmen removed their hats and stood in silence before the graves" (of Booth, Surratt, Powell, Herold, Atzerodt and Wirtz.) That is saying a lot - all humans deserves respect....at least to their families if no one else (and no, I'm not a liberal!) HA!

[HerbS]

Me too BettyO!

[LincolnMan]

I would think it a tradition to identify soldiers graves when able to do so. This, of course, is not always possible. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier represents not only the service of that individual but all those who lay buried unrecognized.