At Ready (statue) facts for kids
At Ready is a statue from 1909 that honored a soldier from the Confederate Army. This army fought for the Southern states during the American Civil War. The statue was first placed in front of the Albemarle County Courthouse in downtown Charlottesville, Virginia.
People often called the statue "Johnny Reb." It was taken down on September 12, 2020. The statue, along with a cannon and cannonballs that were nearby, was moved. They are now planned to be shown at the Third Winchester Battlefield. This battlefield is part of the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District.
History of the Statue
The statue was first shown to the public on May 5, 1909. This date was special because it was the anniversary of the Monticello Guard's creation in 1857. The Monticello Guard was a group of local soldiers in Charlottesville.
When Virginia decided to leave the United States in 1861, this group gathered at the Albemarle County Courthouse. They then became part of the 19th Virginia Infantry, a unit that fought in the Civil War.
Why the Statue Was Moved
On August 6, 2020, the leaders of Albemarle County, called the Board of Supervisors, all agreed to move the statue. Many communities in Virginia moved monuments in 2020. This was often because of new laws about public monuments and changing ideas about where such statues should be displayed.
Albemarle County was the first place to move a war memorial under a new law. This law about statues became active on July 1, 2020.
