A determined group of New York volunteers cleaned up and restored the grave site of Union General George H. Thomas and his wife Frances.
That it had fallen into disrepair is both disheartening and unsurprising. And quite possibly a source of grim humor to Pap Thomas in the hereafter.
"Typical."
But good on the residents of Troy for honoring a man deserving of far more honor and esteem than historical memory has yet to accord him.
“A lot of people don’t know a lot about Oakwood Cemetery. It’s a gem. A cemetery a gem? People don’t think about that,” said Dave Dziewulski who is with Sons Of Union Veterans Of The Civil War.
He, as well as a small army of volunteers and donors, just completed a renovation of the final resting place of one of Oakwood Cemetery’s most famous residents: Civil War Union Army General George Henry Thomas.
Thomas was known as the “Rock of Chickamauga” for holding the line during the battle of Chickamauga Creek.
“Because he stood like a rock, and was able to hold the line, he prevented a total rout of the Union forces,” said Dziewulski.
The native Virginian’s family were slave owners and shunned Thomas after the he chose to join the Union Army. The war hero married a woman from Troy, and after dying of natural causes, was buried in the Collar City.
But time and the elements wore down the sculpted sarcophagus where Thomas and his wife are interned, as well as their family plot.
So, Dziewulski and his fellow volunteers, some of them with the Sons Of Union Veterans Of The Civil War, got to work and removed rotting trees and replaced broken iron fencing. They also added new finials to replace stolen ones and chemically washed away years of tarnish.
Now it’s restored to its original beauty.
I think in every photo this man wears a glare that could slice through steel.
ReplyDeleteYes, he does, now that you mention it.
DeleteBy all accounts, the only sign of unease he displayed during battle was by tugging at his beard. Which he did so quite a bit a Chickamauga, at least until Granger's reserve division arrived from the north.
He truly projected an air of unflappable calm--and it was contagious.
I don't know much about the man,but from what I've heard he was a rare breed: a competent general, and a humble one. Unlike others, he didn't write memoirs in which he either excused himself of his shortcomings or glorified his successes. He also had some harsh words for those who tried to rewrite history to be more favourable to the South.
DeleteThose who fought alongside him--the wretched John Schofield being the rarest of exceptions--invariably praised him. General Oliver Otis Howard, who founded Howard University, compared him to George Washington in demeanor, tenacity and solicitude for his men, and he wasn't the only one to favorably compare the latter George to the Father of His Country.
DeleteHe was meticulous when it came to logistics and he was an early advocate of his troops building immprovised breastworks before battle. No matter how long they'd marched during the day, when Pap said to cut down trees to get ready for battle, it was done with a will.
And he was humble, once to a definite fault: he should have accepted command of the Army of the Cumberland after Buell was relieved.
It is a shame he had his wife burn his personal papers in his will, as his surviving letters demonstrate he was a decent prose stylist. And his memoirs would have been a useful correction to Sherman's often-mendacious exercises in butt-covering and Grant's sometimes-harsh appraisal.
Yes, I am a keeper of the flame for GHT's memory--he deserves far better than he has received.
Standing by the Union cost him quite a bit personally. His Confederate sisters turned his pictures to wall and never uttered his name again. Thomas after one battle was asked if the Union dead should be buried by State. Thomas said they should be mixed up. He said he had heard more than enough about State's Rights.
ReplyDeleteAt the end, his sisters appear to have genuinely regretted their part, sending a seedling from the family estate to plant at his equestrian statue in Washington.
DeleteAnd they strenuously denied ever turning his picture to the wall, though that may have been the regret speaking post-facto.
On the other hand, he and his brother reconciled quickly after the War, which was a comfort to him.
I think it was after Chattanooga that he uttered that line.
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