FRANKLIN COUNTY, Va. (WSET) — In Rocky Mount, history is getting a new place to stand. For generations, the names of many soldiers were missing from monuments and from memory.
On Sunday, January 18, that changed forever, when a new monument honoring 70 black men from Franklin County who fought in the Civil War as part of the U.S Colored Troops was unveiled.
We probably would not have a United States of America had it not been for those 185,000 black men, and we need to acknowledge that, given the limitations placed upon them,” Larry Moore, a retired Lieutenant Colonel for the U.S. Army, said.
The memorial is the first statue of its kind in Virginia. The 14-foot bronze figure now stands tall, created by renowned sculptors Rick Weaver and Paul DiPasquale.
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For the organizers, this project is more than art; it’s about recognition.
“America’s wars have been fought by all Americans. Not just white Americans, not just black Americans, but all Americans have fought to make the United States the country that we hope it will become one day,” Moore said.
The effort took off after a 2020 referendum blocked plans to remove a Confederate monument from county property. Instead of giving up, community members decided to shift their focus.
“One of our members, Glenna Moore, discovered that there were some black men born in Franklin County who became United States Colored Troops. She was the emphasis for us to apply for the Mellon Foundation grant from Virginia Tech, and that just became our focus,” Eric Anspaugh, president of Franklin County NAACP, said.
The unveiling happened right before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and organizers said the timing was far from a coincidence.
Attempts are being made to erase history, or tone back history; we’re pushing upstream, and that this is important history. This needs to be told; this needs to be known, and that’s why we’re doing this project,” Anspaugh said.
Fewer than 25 monuments exist that honor African American troops in America, compared to more than 1,500 dedicated to Confederate soldiers.
Organizers hope the new addition stands both as a memorial and a message that sparks conversations for generations to come.
