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Sylva Town Commissioners voted Thursday to reject plans to update the base of Jackson County’s Confederate monument. ‘Sylva Sam’ sits outside the historic
Lilly Knoepp/BPR News
Jackson County Commissioners voted last night to move forward with plans to update the Confederate monument, known as Sylva Sam , who sits below the Jackson County Public Library Complex.
County Manager Don Adams shared that the plaque to cover the current Confederate flag on the monument will cost about $14,000 including installation. AOA signs in Yadkinville provided the estimate.
The plaque also will cover language honoring the Confederate side of the Civil War with a new inscription highlighting the monument’s rededication. The monument was “rededicated” in 1996 to “Jackson County Veterans of all wars.”
Jackson County Commissioners shared an updated mock up of the statue at the May 18th meeting.
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Jackson County Commissioner Gayle Woody and Chairman Brian McMahan presented the first look at changes to the county’s Confederate monument at an April work session. The Confederate flag on “Sylva Sam” will be covered with a plaque and historical panels will be added around the monument.
Eight months ago, Jackson County Commissioners voted to keep the county’s Confederate monument in Sylva – but with some historical context added to it. BPR reports on the first glimpse of what the changes will look like:
Chairman Brian McMahan and Commissioner Gayle Woody shared proposed wording that will cover up the Confederate flag and inscription on the base of the monument known as Sylva Sam. The new wording highlights its 1996 rededication to both Confederate and Union soldiers. It would also go a step further and add the words “E Pluribus Unum” to the base, explained McMahan:
They say hindsight is 2020 and that is definitely true as we’re all eager to put this disaster of a year in the dumpster and light it on fire.
While many of us remember way back in January feeling like 2020 would be our year we just couldn’t predict it would be our year of high unemployment, isolation, fear, sickness and uncertainties.
All we can hope for now is that 2021 will bring an end to this pandemic and that we’ve all learned some hard lessons we can take along with us in this uncertain future.
But before we move on, The Smoky Mountain News once again takes a look back to reflect on the last year of news it’s been a doozy. Some of the headlines that have graced our pages could pass for a satire headline from The Onion, but sadly, they’re all too real. However devastating and infuriating the news has been this year, it’s still important to find a little bit of humor in the absurd.