Dublin Core
Title
Johnny Reb Confederate Monument, Orlando, FL
Description
On June 3, 1911 “Johnny Reb” a six-foot granite Confederate soldier was placed upon a thirty-foot monument adjacent to the Orange County Courthouse in Orlando, Florida [1]. The name “Johnny Reb” symbolizes a Confederate soldier's moral and cultural values [2].
The Lost Cause caused a divide in the state of Florida, with the North wanting to continue with traditional values and the South desiring expansion and urbanization[6]. Florida only contributed cattle to the Confederate army before the Battle of Olustee towards Jacksonville, Florida. However, people grasped onto the identity of The Lost Cause to withhold changing societal ideals, which is still evident today.
From 1908 to its erection in 1911, the Annie Coleman Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) fundraised, designed, and created this monument. Johnny Reb sat idle over Lake Eola and the town square until 1917 when it was determined hazardous to evolving traffic patterns[1]. In the 1960s the gun was stolen from “Johnny Reb" and its shattered pieces were scattered across the city of Orlando [3]. Albin Polasek created and sculpted a new gun for the statue to hold, which caused the first public outcry against the statue [3].
“Johnny Reb” would be moved to Greenwood Lakes Cemetery on June 20, 2017 [1]. During its removal, workers found a time capsule buried in the base of the statue and surrendered it to the city. The time capsule held: coins, photographs, flags, dollar bills, pins, newspapers, and weekly minutes of Orlando's UDC meetings [5]. The UDC has sued the city for opening the money box and keeping the artifacts within the regional history center [5]. There has been no mention of how the case has been settled since 2017. However, the Orlando Regional History Center is still in possession of these artifacts.
Inscription:
To the honored memory of The Soldiers, The Sailors, The Statesmen of the Confederate States of America. “Time Cannot teach forgetfulness when grief’s heart is fed by fame.”
“Tis wreathed around with glory and ‘twill live in song and story, though it’s folds are in the dust.”
“The cause for which he suffered was lost; the people for whom he fought were crushed; the hopes in which he trusted were shattered; but his fame, consigned to the keeping of time, which happily is not so much the tomb of virtue as its shrine, shall in the years to come, fire modest worth to noble ends.”
"This monument shall stand through the years to come as our loving tribute to the Confederate Soldiers and as a memorial of his heroic courage, his unparalleled devotion and his unselfish patriotism."
The Lost Cause caused a divide in the state of Florida, with the North wanting to continue with traditional values and the South desiring expansion and urbanization[6]. Florida only contributed cattle to the Confederate army before the Battle of Olustee towards Jacksonville, Florida. However, people grasped onto the identity of The Lost Cause to withhold changing societal ideals, which is still evident today.
From 1908 to its erection in 1911, the Annie Coleman Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) fundraised, designed, and created this monument. Johnny Reb sat idle over Lake Eola and the town square until 1917 when it was determined hazardous to evolving traffic patterns[1]. In the 1960s the gun was stolen from “Johnny Reb" and its shattered pieces were scattered across the city of Orlando [3]. Albin Polasek created and sculpted a new gun for the statue to hold, which caused the first public outcry against the statue [3].
“Johnny Reb” would be moved to Greenwood Lakes Cemetery on June 20, 2017 [1]. During its removal, workers found a time capsule buried in the base of the statue and surrendered it to the city. The time capsule held: coins, photographs, flags, dollar bills, pins, newspapers, and weekly minutes of Orlando's UDC meetings [5]. The UDC has sued the city for opening the money box and keeping the artifacts within the regional history center [5]. There has been no mention of how the case has been settled since 2017. However, the Orlando Regional History Center is still in possession of these artifacts.
Inscription:
To the honored memory of The Soldiers, The Sailors, The Statesmen of the Confederate States of America. “Time Cannot teach forgetfulness when grief’s heart is fed by fame.”
“Tis wreathed around with glory and ‘twill live in song and story, though it’s folds are in the dust.”
“The cause for which he suffered was lost; the people for whom he fought were crushed; the hopes in which he trusted were shattered; but his fame, consigned to the keeping of time, which happily is not so much the tomb of virtue as its shrine, shall in the years to come, fire modest worth to noble ends.”
"This monument shall stand through the years to come as our loving tribute to the Confederate Soldiers and as a memorial of his heroic courage, his unparalleled devotion and his unselfish patriotism."
Creator
The Annie Coleman Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy & Albin Polasek in 1960 sculpted a new gun for the statue.
Source
“1911 Confederate Soldier Monument.” Omeka RSS. Accessed December 1, 2023. https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/exhibits/show/cflmonuments/1911csm.
Williams, Richard. “Johnny Reb.” Johnny Reb - Essential Civil War Curriculum. Accessed December 1, 2023. https://www.essentialcivilwarcurriculum.com/johnny-reb.html.
Thorspecken, Thomas. “Johnny Reb Is Removed from Orlando Florida’s Lake Eola Park.” Urban Sketchers, July 22, 2021. https://urbansketchers.org/2017/06/22/johnny-reb-is-removed-from-orlando/.
Gillespie, Ryan. “‘Johnny Reb’ Confederate Statue in Orlando Has Rainbow, Transgender Flags Buried in Base along with Old Glory, Stars and Bars.” Orlando Sentinel, April 5, 2019. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2018/06/20/johnny-reb-confederate-statue-in-orlando-has-rainbow-transgender-flags-buried-in-base-along-with-old-glory-stars-and-bars/.
‘Johnny Reb’ Confederate Statue Has New Home in Florida.” AP News, December 6, 2017. https://apnews.com/article/4c860cab2c884e919a9c45d49bd53c7e.
Weitz, Seth. “Defending the Old South: The Myth of the Lost ... - Wiley Online Library.” Defending the Old South: The Myth of the Lost Cause and Political Immorality in Florida, 1865–1968, 2009. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1540-6563.2008.00232.x.
Williams, Richard. “Johnny Reb.” Johnny Reb - Essential Civil War Curriculum. Accessed December 1, 2023. https://www.essentialcivilwarcurriculum.com/johnny-reb.html.
Thorspecken, Thomas. “Johnny Reb Is Removed from Orlando Florida’s Lake Eola Park.” Urban Sketchers, July 22, 2021. https://urbansketchers.org/2017/06/22/johnny-reb-is-removed-from-orlando/.
Gillespie, Ryan. “‘Johnny Reb’ Confederate Statue in Orlando Has Rainbow, Transgender Flags Buried in Base along with Old Glory, Stars and Bars.” Orlando Sentinel, April 5, 2019. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2018/06/20/johnny-reb-confederate-statue-in-orlando-has-rainbow-transgender-flags-buried-in-base-along-with-old-glory-stars-and-bars/.
‘Johnny Reb’ Confederate Statue Has New Home in Florida.” AP News, December 6, 2017. https://apnews.com/article/4c860cab2c884e919a9c45d49bd53c7e.
Weitz, Seth. “Defending the Old South: The Myth of the Lost ... - Wiley Online Library.” Defending the Old South: The Myth of the Lost Cause and Political Immorality in Florida, 1865–1968, 2009. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1540-6563.2008.00232.x.
Date
Erected: June 3, 1911
Moved: 1917 & June 20, 2017
Moved: 1917 & June 20, 2017
Contributor
Madison Hardrick
Format
Statue
Language
English
Type
Marble Statue
Identifier
HIST 402A 2023
Coverage
Orlando, FL