This challenge is set forth by No Story Too Small and this week’s theme is “32.”
For those of you don’t do genealogy, you have 2 parents, 4 grandparents, 8 great grandparents, 16 2nd great-grandparents, and 32 3rd great-grandparents. The family tree grows exponentially.
This generation of 32 people in my past have been on my mind a lot lately due to the feeding frenzy of liberals trying to erase the history of the Confederacy. Personally, I don’t have a problem with the Confederate flag, but I understand that hate groups have adopted it and it may no longer represent the South throughout the rest of the United States. Perhaps it is time for a discussion about where it should and should not be flown.
I do, however, have a problem with the hatred that these history-erasing people, including some of my very own friends, are spewing and the way vandals are destroying flags, graves, statues, and monuments. You’ll see why in a moment. I’ve decided to not write about only one of my 32 grandmas and grandpas, but all of them.
Jeremiah William Crane, born 1828 Alabama
Sarah Frances Grimes, born 1824 Alabama
Amos Windham Mercer, born 1799 South Carolina
Amanda Merron, born 1829 Florida
Archibald White, born 1808 North Carolina
Elizabeth B Farrish, born 1824 Alabama
Leonard H Morrow, born 1812 Tennessee
Silvia Truss, born 1814 North Carolina
Robert Theodore Pickett, born 1836 Mississippi
Lucy Ann Rackley, born 1834 Alabama
William Thomas Fisher, born 1819 Alabama*
Elizabeth Ann Butler, born 1834 North Carolina
Green Keene, born 1834 South Carolina
Sarah Tabitha unknown, born 1833 Alabama
William Lafayette Brown, born 1836 Mississippi*
Sarah Ann Elvira Dollar, born 1836 Alabama
Rev. Joseph M. Culpepper, born 1822 Georgia**
Nancy Yarbrough, born 1822 Georgia
William Henry Blanks II, born 1800 Georgia
Nancy Narcissus Young, born 1800 North Carolina
Rice Benjamin Carpenter, born 1828 Alabama**
Mary Ann Rodgers, born 1828 Mississippi
George Washington Spencer, born 1829 Alabama*
Nancy Virginia “Ginny” Holdcroft, born 1839 Mississippi
James C Howington, born 1823 North Carolina*
Amelia Ann Elizabeth Smith, born 1827 Alabama
Of the six missing names; two were in Dublin, Ireland, their son (my 2nd great) arrived on the shores of Florida in 1861; two were Choctaw Indians in the Choctaw Territory of Mississippi but I don’t know their names; and the final two are unaccounted for as I have not been able to trace them, but their daughter (my 2nd great), was born in Alabama in 1848, so they certainly lived in the South.
Notice anything?? Yes, 26 (28 if you count the Choctaws, 30 if you count the folks living in Alabama) of my 32 3rd great-grandparents were born in the Confederate States, and EVERY ONE of my 16 2nd greats lived there also. From the records I have: six of the men above fought with the Confederacy (noted by *) – two died in battle (noted by **). Three of my 2nd greats (sons of the above) fought with the Confederacy, not to mention the countless brothers and other sons who served and sometimes died. Mary Ann Rodgers named above lost three brothers, three brothers-in-law, and her husband.
Off the top of my head, eight to ten of these families were in America during the Revolution, fighting for freedom – the freedom to say and do as you please. You have the freedom to be “offended” by the Confederate flag. It was given to you by MY ancestors who have been struggling since the 1600s to build a great country, even before it was a country.
Here’s where I have a problem. You don’t have the freedom nor the “right” to desecrate Confederate graves, statues, monuments, Confederate cemeteries, or the flags within their boundaries, and you certainly don’t have the freedom to take away my heritage. You will never accomplish that. You will never change how I feel about the men who fought in the Confederate Army. They are AMERICAN soldiers. They will always have my deepest respect for being willing to die for what they believed in, whether you agree with their cause or not. My heritage will not be erased. It will not disappear. Do you want to know why? Because I will fight to keep it alive in my family, my community, my descendants, and my heart. I will fight with the same veracity shown by my grandparents when they fought for their freedom. After all, their blood runs in my veins, too.
Lori Crane 
Good for you!!! The flag thing is a big distraction. How about the Christians in the church who forgave the mentally ill lone gunman? Why wasn’t that the BIG story? All flags and all people have a history of good and bad.
If you listen closely to newscasts about every shooter, they all have one thing in common…mood-altering drugs. I always thought hate was the underlying issue, but maybe altered brain chemistry is the real problem. Its certainly not a red-and-blue cloth.
I think you and I would agree on most things. The Confederate flag is where we may have some disagreement on. To me the flag is a sign of treason and should never be flow on public property. I also believe that anyone who wishes can fly the flag on their own property, and I would gladly defend their right to do so. That would go for many of the flags we both could think of that would cause concern. I do however think that we should be aware of other people’s feelings when we display these flags. If for nothing else just out of courtesy. Your statement
(“You don’t have the freedom nor the “right” to desecrate Confederate graves, statues, monuments, Confederate cemeteries, or the flags within their boundaries, and you certainly don’t have the freedom to take away my heritage.”)
is very true. I hope no one attempts to. If they do I will stand with you. I just do not feel that flying the Confederate flag in any version is proper on public property. I hope you will not be too upset with me as I enjoy reading your blog.
Of course I’m not upset with you. We are all different. Sadly, the desecration I mentioned is happening daily all over the south. They’re also trying to get rid if markers, monuments, and changing park names. They will succeed if people like me don’t stand up and speak. Thank you for allowing me to do do.
That is very sad indeed. This country is so ignorant of it’s history that it is a shame. It needs to be taught in schools. A few years ago ( at the age of 54) I went back to college to get a degree I always wanted. I could not believe that I did not have to take one history course. In fact the college only had four courses in history that it even offered. One was for New York State history (I live in N.Y.) two others divided by years for general U.S. History and the other was a history of social movements in the U.S. Pretty sad if you ask me.
And by the way…the US flag is a flag of treason also. 🙂
True. The difference is that we won. 🙂
LOL!
I appreciate your honesty, your passion and your patriotism. You are speaking from a place of truth and your personal knowledge of those close to you and I respect that. I wish that differences could be discussed and a common ground more easily established. Diane- Boston