A recently unveiled memorial in Plant City, Fla., honors the Confederacy's "Cow Cavalry" troops by featuring a Confederate soldier, a horse and cattle.

Designed and funded by a local chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the new bronze memorial recognizes the efforts of those Confederate troops who helped guard Florida's cattle during the Civil War, the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times said Sunday.

Yet when the memorial was unveiled Saturday to a group of Confederate supporters, one local official remained strongly opposed to what it also represents.

City Commissioner Mary Yvette Thomas Mathis said local officials were initially told the memorial would feature a cowboy, not a member of the Confederacy.

"This is a Confederate soldier, not just a cowboy, that we're putting on city property," Mathis said. "I just don't feel good about it."

While other Plant City residents followed suit with similar complaints, the artist behind the memorial defended his work and what it represents.

"I love my history, and I know the truth about the war," artist Mike Bethune told the Times. "I'm very, very proud of this memorial."  // Copyright 2007 by United Press International



Publication date: 18 November 2007   

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