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The Confederate Monument at Santa Ana Cemetery was erected in 2004 by Santa Ana Mayor Gordon Bricken and members of the Orange County Sons of Confederate Veterans. The monument was a 9-foot-tall, 7-ton granite rectangular structure created to honor Civil War veterans who lived and died in Orange County. [1]
The monument’s inscription and presence set out to honor the Confederacy’s evolving presence beyond the South, from the slave owner to the Klansman. The Lost Cause narrative found its way to the West Coast following the Civil War, allowing its ideology to take hold in the Golden State. One of the founders of Orange County, Dr. Henry William Head, was a Confederate veteran and prominent member of the Klu Klux Klan. As one source notes, “Orange County regards its Klan history fondly enough that there are still public places named after prominent Klansmen.” [3] Orange County’s controversial history is what allowed the establishment of the Confederate Monument at Santa Ana Cemetery. The monument was erected very recently, in 2004, with Santa Ana Mayor Gordon Bricken a strong believer in the Lost Cause narrative. [4]
The monument was removed on August 1, 2019, by the Orange County Cemetery District. The district requested that the Sons of Confederate Veterans remove the monument in February 2019 since there was no record of permits for its construction. [5] The Sons of Confederate Veterans ignored the request. On July 7, 2019, the monument was vandalized “with red paint and the word “RACISTS” inscribed on the face of the structure. [6] The damage resulted in the district acting and removing the monument.
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Source
2. New Santa Ana. (2019, July 9). A confederate monument at the Santa Ana Cemetery was vandalized. https://newsantaana.com/a-confederate-monument-at-the-santa-ana-cemetery-was-vandalized/.
3. New Santa Ana. (2019, July 9). A confederate monument at the Santa Ana Cemetery was vandalized. https://newsantaana.com/a-confederate-monument-at-the-santa-ana-cemetery-was-vandalized/.
4. Los Angeles Times. (2013, June 27). Gordon Bricken dies at 76; uncovered Santa Ana's Civil War Ties. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 3, 2021, from https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-gordon-bricken-20130628-story.html.
5. Stewart, Joshua. “Confederate plaque in San Diego has history of controversy, repeated removal,” The San Diego Union-Tribune, August 16, 2017. Accessed November 30, 2021. https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/sd-me-confederate-monument-20170816-story.html
6. New Santa Ana. (2019, August 2). The Confederate Monument at the Santa Ana Cemetery has been removed. https://newsantaana.com/the-confederate-monument-at-the-santa-ana-cemetery-has-been-removed/.
7. Tour, J. L., (2020, June 5). A brief history of the ku klux klan in Orange County: Notes on the banality of evil. Fullerton Observer. Retrieved December 3, 2021, from https://fullertonobserver.com/2019/01/07/a-brief-history-of-the-ku-klux-klan-in-orange-county-notes-on-the-banality-of-evil/.
8. Arellano, G. (2018, October 24). Gustavo Arellano. OC Weekly. Retrieved December 3, 2021, from https://www.ocweekly.com/orange-county-founded-by-kkk-6474577/.
Date
Removed: August 1, 2019