Walking Through History

  The Shelby Springs Confederate Cemetery is located on Shelby County road 42, almost a mile from the intersection of County road 25.   There is a historic marker at the entrance.  The marker reads as follows...
   The confederate army established a soldiers home and hospital here (1863-1865) as a part of the CSA Camp Winn Training Site.  Father Leray and the Sisters of Mercy staffed the hospital after fleeing Civil War destruction in Vicksburg, MS.  They brought with them by train many wounded and sick Confederate soldiers.  This existing public cemetery was expanded for those soldiers who died of battle wounds and illnesses.  Civilian burials continued until 1921.  Lay Down Your Arms...Close Ranks... Rest in Eternal Peace...


 Some would think this is a morbid place to visit, but it isn't!  It certainly wouldn't be politically correct.  It is however, a good place to walk through and ponder the many lives lost.  The soldiers in Vicksburg had come from many states and the list of infantry, calvary, and artillery divisions reflect that.  The complete list of soldier's names can be found on rootsweb here.  

 From what I've read, the graves were x-rayed(probably not the right terminology), so the tombstones would be oriented correctly.  Most of the tombstones show "unknown".   Families of known soldiers can purchase marked stones but correct burial sites cannot be identified.
  





 I tried to find out more about the trip from Vicksburg to Shelby but again history seems quiet.  All we know is that when things got bad in Vicksburg, Father Leray and the Sisters of Mercy moved their hospital out of harms way.  I'm sure that at the time, it was no easy feat.  Their names are listed on a monument at the Cemetery.







Reading about men fighting and dying for a cause in a history book just isn't the same as walking among their resting places.  They were all real people who felt so strongly about their beliefs they were willing not just to die for them but to kill in battle!  They were from a time very alien to ours and it is unfair to judge them guilty of any crime.  It was a war, and they fought bravely and valiantly.  Some died horribly, not just from battle but from sickness and disease.  Again, those caring for these deserve great honor!






If you find yourself near Columbiana or Calera, Alabama, stop by for a spell.  It'll do you good!