Some people love visiting a specific restaurant chain, a certain kind of store or park in each town they visit. But when I travel, I always stop at the town’s cemetery.
You can learn a lot about a town simply by the way they care for the people they’ve lost. And this cemetery was no different.
There were so many fascinating memorials in this cemetery. Everywhere I turned there was something unique that begged me to stop by, take a look and learn a little more. Here is what I discovered.
The Confederate Section
This section of the cemetery has an interesting history aside from the obvious.
I had previously been aware that the cemetery was on the National List of Historic Places, along with several other cemeteries in Garland County.
What I did not know was only the Confederate Section is on the list. A few articles note that, by being on this list, National Park Service helps the owner maintain the area with limited financial incentive.
The Monument
According to this article, it took the Daughters of the Confederacy thirteen years to fund and erect this memorial.
There is something about the way this memorial reads that that doesn’t sit well with me. Perhaps calling it “Our Confederate Dead” was a socially acceptable communication when the memorial was established. But, I just don’t care for the tone with which it reads.
In addition to its tone, there is no additional verbiage to capture the historical significance of the Civil War, the Confederacy, or the individuals buried there. Without those things in place, I fear the memorial’s purpose could be lost in time.
George W. Hill
The most interesting memorial in the Confederate Section is this memorial for George W. Hill. The inscription reads that he was 67 years, 4 months and 18 days old when he passed on Dec 7, 1908.
The sphere at the top of this memorial caught my eye. Spheres and circles are often used in cemetery memorials to represent eternity. However, no mention of faith is made on the memorial or in his obituary, thus making me curious.
According to his obituary, George W Hill was a Captain for the Confederate army, who served in the siege at the Battle of Vicksburg.
He later moved to Hot Springs, AR to manage The Arkansas Club for “Dutch Fred” Walbaum. This likely had something to do with horse racing, as Walbaum was known for.
It could be that his family simply liked the design, or perhaps there is a meaning we will never know.
The Walkers
One thing that caught my eye about this memorial was actually the epitaph. If you zoom in, you’ll see it reads Not Lost, But Gone Before. You will also notice the subtle engraving of a trophy, which typically represents victory over death (ie eternal life).
But there was something else about this memorial that caught my eye.
It was this shiny penny on top of the memorial.
By placing a penny on a Veteran’s grave, you are starting that you visited. It is a way of showing the Veteran’s memory and/or sacrifice has been honored.
The Spanish American War
Admittedly, I am not the most knowledgeable about the Spanish-American War. But this section honoring it’s Veterans was absolutely amazing.
I didn’t have any D2 cleaner with me when I visited the cemetery. However, I would love to go back and get some of these memorials looking clean again.
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