Halloween graveyard tour prompts discussion on value of Confederate monuments
Students who attend the Halloween graveyard tour will get to see graves that go as far back as the Civil War.
Photo Courtesy of Kaitlyn Carter
It will still be light outside, and Dr. Randy Wood says it won't be scary—so now there are plenty of reasons to join Lee's history department on a graveyard tour this Halloween season.
On Oct. 29, history Capstone students are hosting the annual Fort Hill Cemetery tour from four in the afternoon until dusk.
The guides, seniors who spend the first half of their semester in the local archives researching historical figures, will be dressed for the particular time period in which their subject lived.
Dr. Randy Wood, the event faculty supervisor, chatted with Lee Clarion about the history of the event and addressed the fear factor that comes along with spending time in a graveyard right before Halloween.
“This our 11th year doing this project. Usually we have about 200 people attend—sometimes we’ve had 300 people,” Wood said. “We try to keep in groups of 15 or 20, and they are led to each tombstone. It’s open to all ages, and there is no spookiness at all.”
Upon arrival, each attendee will be given a pamphlet that includes a compilation of the info gathered by this semester’s Capstone class.
Fort Hill Cemetery, located on South Ocoee Street, is known as Cleveland’s "historic cemetery" and includes graves dating as far back as the Civil War—including a monument to 17 fallen Confederate soldiers of the 33rd Alabama Volunteers.
And with the recent controversy surrounding Confederate monuments, this aspect of the tour has the potential to fall under some scrutiny.
Dr. Andrew Bledsoe, a professor in the history department, weighed in on whether or not these memorials held any sort of historical value.
“There is a concern from people…worried about removing monuments, and they’re saying that’s erasing our history," Bledsoe said. “The monuments are not our history. To me, monuments represent a way of remembering history. I think that monuments reflect the sort of society we want to live in. And if that changes over time, then that’s for the better.”
On the other hand, President Donald Trump has been strong in his opposition toward the removal of Confederate symbols. He points to the monuments as important to our history as a nation.
“[It’s] sad to see the history and culture of our great country being ripped apart with the removal of our beautiful statues and monuments,” Trump said.
Senior history major Mitch Mizell said he agrees that Confederate memorials ought to left alone and urged people to consider the historical context of the issue.
“We should not remove statues that honor the dead. This was a soldier's war—many far younger than us,” Mizell said, “Most Confederate soldiers were everyday folks like you and me who had no dog in the fight in terms of slavery; they were just doing their duty.”
Though Fort Hill Cemetery does include a Confederate monument, it also holds a rich local history which will once more be explored in a unique and interactive way by Lee's history department. For more details on this year’s Fort Hill Cemetery tour, contact Dr. Randy Wood at rwood@leeuniversity.edu.
