“Zebulon Vance, throughout his life, worked for the welfare and defense of North Carolina. His monument should come back.”
Tag: Civil War
Showing 1-21 of 40 results
Letter: The case for rebuilding the Vance Monument
“Rebuilding the obelisk presents an opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue about our past, acknowledging the undesirable complexities of historical figures like Vance, while also honoring the positive aspects of their legacies.”
Letter: Reimagining Asheville’s obelisk
“Couldn’t the dimensions of the old obelisk yield a new and beguiling one, perhaps composed of a transparent composite material?
Letter: Stand up to antisemitic violence
“I hope Asheville will not be dragged into the same trouble, as many places in North Carolina have been now, but people should be aware of this and stand up against antisemitic violence all over the state and the whole country.”
Bad news, good news: The Gospel According to Jerry
“The African American community, in cooperation with UNC Asheville, has established a charter school, the P.E.A.K. Academy, which is specifically designed and staffed to give poor Black and other minority children a fair shot at a quality education.”
Letter: The critical race theory bugaboo
“If critical race theory cannot be allowed a place in our educational system, locally and elsewhere, I despair for our country.”
Letter: Harriet Tubman statue resonates with WNC family’s history
” I loved the emblem of Harriet Tubman with her right hand protectively spread across the chest of a frightened little girl. It speaks volumes to me.”
Harriet Tubman statue comes to Sylva
Western North Carolina is grappling with a controversial part of its history: monuments erected in commemoration of Confederate figures. In May, after months of debate and consideration by a specially appointed task force, Asheville began removing the Vance Monument, an obelisk honoring the late Confederate military officer and former Gov. Zebulon Baird Vance. And in […]
Asheville Archives: Initial reactions to the Shelton Laurel Massacre, 1863
On Jan. 19, 1863, Confederate soldiers executed 13 men and boys in Madison County accused of raiding properties in the town of Marshall. The action elicited condemnation both in North Carolina and other regions of a war torn nation.
Author Vicki Lane takes multiple views of the Shelton Laurel Massacre
In her latest novel, “And the Crows Took Their Eyes,” local author Vicki Lane considers the impact of the 1863 Shelton Laurel Massacre and the consequences it had on both the victims’ families and the perpetrators of the event.
Letter: Cawthorn’s comments raise troubling questions
“But his visit to Berchtesgaden and his comments there raise troubling questions that he has failed to answer.”
Letter: Confederate monuments, the fake news of the time
“Turns out there was this effort about 30 years after the war … to propagandize to the youth in schools and erect all of these Confederate statues and monuments to sort of rewrite history, painting the South as fallen victims of big government oppression.”
Local author explores an alternative to the Civil War
In his debut novel, David Sullivan explores ways the Civil War could have been avoided.
Asheville Archives: Zebulon Vance argues in favor of slavery, 1860
“Plainly and unequivocally, common sense says keep the slave where he is now — in servitude,” declared Zebulon Vance, in a May 16, 1860 address to the House of Representatives.
Asheville Archives: Locals confronted by the realities of war, 1862
“Buncombe blood flowed freely, and many of our gallant boys are among the slain,” the Asheville News reported on July 17, 1862. At the time, both Union and Confederate troops suffered immense losses during the Seven Days Battles near Richmond, Va.
Lynching’s legacy: Coming to terms with a shameful past
“Suddenly, we will have two monuments to consider: the steel lynching monument and Vance’s.”
Letter: Lost Cause myths continue to reverberate
“The irony that the supporters of the Lost Cause claim to oppose the rewriting of history is that in many cases, they were the ones who rewrote that history.”
Letter: Civil War historians should face reality
“Now, people like Cox, by her writings and lectures, have incited individuals to do such things as to deface the plaque to Gen. Robert E. Lee at the Vance Monument.”
Historian Karen Cox confronts Confederate monuments
On Saturday, May 19, historian Karen Cox will present “Confederate Monuments in the Jim Crow South” in the Lord Auditorium at Pack Memorial Library.
Beyond stereotypes: portrait of the rural mountain community of Spillcorn
“White, rural communities like Spillcorn are ignored at the risk of misunderstanding their agency and influence in America today.”
Letter: For many, Confederate flag means ‘I’m a Southerner’
“I still cannot stand to see a swastika, which to me is ugly and hateful. Why pointedly display a symbol that you know will upset some people unless that is your aim in the first place?”