Confederate Memorial Fountain (1916-2017)
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Tourists in front of the fountain in 1917
Girls atop the fountain in 1946
Confederate Memorial Fountain in 2014
Close up of the fountain's inscription
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
The Confederate Memorial Fountain in Hill Park was constructed by the Daughters of the Confederacy in 1916, and is the only monument to the Confederacy in the state according to Ken Robinson’s book, “Montana Territory and the Civil War.” Designed by architect George H. Carsley and made of Montana granite, the fountain boasts an inscription that reads “A Longing Tribute to Our Confederate Soldiers.”
Montana became a state 24 years after the Civil War ended. Former Confederates were among some of the early settlers and a small chapter of the United Confederate Veterans were active in Montana at some time. The fountain underwent restoration in 2008 and was removed in 2017 following many years of controversy. The decision to remove the monument was accelerated by the violent protest in Charlottesville in August, 2017. A small crowd of twenty protesters surrounded the fountain upon the news that the city planned to remove the monument, but only two were arrested and the monument was removed without violence. The monument will be stored in a city warehouse pending a decision about its proper place in a museum or other place where its history might be presented in context.
Sources
Calvan, Bobby. City of Helena removes Confederate memorial. Bozeman Daily Chronicle. August 18, 2017. Accessed August 19, 2017. http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/ap_news/montana/city-of-helena-removes-Confederate-memorial/article_9ef9a531-efd1-5759-9ee1-73fc694a9513.html.