The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1895-09-21
AND THE GRAY.
AN EVENT OF INTEREST TO UNION
MEN AND 'CONFEDERATES.
The Great ChickamauEa National
Park, Where ccurred Several of
the Famous Battles of the Late
War, Will BE Dedicated This Week

The Great ChickamauEa National
Park, Where Occurred Several of
the Famous Battles of h Late
War, Will BE Dedicated This Week
Chattanooga, Tenn, Sept. 17.-Under
the guiding hand of, the secretary of
war, acting under the authority Of
congress, Chattanooga and the notable
battlefields surrounding it have been
prepared for a national event with
out parallel. Great throngs of veter-
ans who fought against each other are
crowding into the city to take equal
part, under national enactment. in the
dedication of fields which their PROV
ess made memorable, as a national
military park, wherein the movements
and the achievements of each side
have received impartial attention.
AS provided in the act of congress-,
Secretary Lamont has invited the at
tendance of the executive department
Of the government, the members of
the supreme court, congress and it's
presiding officers, the lieutenant gen.
eral of the army and the admiral of
the navy, and the governors Of all the
states with their staffs, and the vet
Grams of the contending armies. All
are prominently represented. Nearly
every surviving general of the two
armies has sent notice Of his intention
to attend. The governor of every
state which had troops in the action
here responded favorably to the sec
retary's invitation. In a few cases the
governors themselves will be prevent
ed from attending, but their states
will be officially represented.
A joint committee of twenty n
tors and thirty members Of the house
will represent congress. The men,
bers of twenty-siX state commissions
who have been at work with the ma
tional commission in locating lines of
battle Of troops of their respective
states, will attend. The Society OF
the Army of the Cumberland and Of
the Army of the Tennessee, and the
G.. A. R., and the Association of Con-
federate veterans will be present I'll
unusual numbers. This concourse of
people is to be increased by a gather
ing of an army of visitors already
known to be so great that it will tax
the capacity of the railroads c%entering
here and the city to their utmost ca
pacity.
The park which is to be dedicated is
of unusual dimensions. 1t extends.
with its approaches, from Sherman
Heights in Tennessee, six miles north
of Chattanooga. to Glass Mill, in
Georgia. a distance Of twenty-five
miles. The broad boulevard between
these two points is owned in fee
simple by the government as a part
of the park, with full jurisdiction
over this, over the fifteen square miles
of the Chickamauga field and over
nan miles besides of old approaches
which has been ceded to the govern
mcnt by the States Of Tennessee and
Georgia.
The park and it's approaches em-
brace or overlook the field Of five days
Of general battle between great
armies and three days of minor en-
gagements, namely: Chickamauga.
Orchard Knob, Lookout Mountain and
Missionary Ridge, Browns Ferry and
Wauhatchie.
There is no distinction in the prep
aration of the tablets between Union
and Confederate forces, nor in any
other department of the work of es-
tablishing the park is there any diff
ference. The design is to mark with
historical accuracy the identical
S1OOl1u VI Oh6NeSiiSAsS lin ~
cured on these fields and thus pre-
sent an object lesson in actual war
such as no other nation has attempted.
Steel observation towers rising
above the forests at various command
ing positions. afford views of the en-
tire theater Of battle. Chickamauga
is already thickly dotted with state
monuments. and. while not over half
'of which are to be erected have yet
been provided, the lines of the three
days of engagement are readily fol-
lowed. Ohio has IS monuments and
53 granite markers for minor positions
in place. Minnesota has five monu
ments to her two organizations and
two of these are the most costly Of
any yet erected. Massachusetts has a
fine granite and bronze monument on
Orchard Knob in Chattanooga. In
diana has 81 monuments in course of
erection: Illinois has 33; Wisconsin,
10: Michigan. IL; Missouri. 1 COnfed-
crate and 4 Union. and all these states
have numerous markers. Kansas has
3 excellent monuments to her one
regiment. Pennsylvania is working
theoretically under large appropria-
tions. and Tennessee is preparing con-
tracts for 4 large memorial monu-
ments. one of which is to federal SOL
diers. New York is preparing to
erect costly and imposing memorials
on the Chattanooga fields. ALI Of the
monuments thus far erected, except
those from Indiana. are granite or
bronze. Those of that state are Bed
ford limestone.