Confederate Mass Grave Monument in Somerset facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Confederate Mass Grave Monument in Somerset
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| Location | Pulaski County, Kentucky |
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| Nearest city | Nancy, Kentucky |
| Built | 1910 |
| MPS | Civil War Monuments of Kentucky MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 97000671 |
| Added to NRHP | July 17, 1997 |
The Confederate Mass Grave Monument in Somerset is a special memorial in Pulaski County, Kentucky, near Nancy, Kentucky. It was built to honor the many Confederate soldiers buried there. These soldiers died during a big battle called the Battle of Mill Springs. They came from states like Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee. More than a hundred soldiers are buried together here.
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Why Was This Monument Built?
The monument was built in 1910 by a man named Bennett H. Young. During the American Civil War, Young was a soldier who rode with Confederate general John Hunt Morgan.
Young was interested in this area because he heard about the "Zollie Tree." This tree was decorated every year on Memorial Day by a local woman. She did this to honor General Felix K. Zollicoffer, who died at the Battle of Mill Springs.
When the monument was built, people in the South often called the Battle of Mill Springs the "Battle of Fishing Creek." That's why the monument uses that name. The monument itself is a large, flat stone made of limestone. It is about 4 feet long and 3 feet wide. This stone sits on a concrete base that is about 1 foot tall.
The Zollie Tree and Zollicoffer Park
The Zollie Tree was very important to the creation of this monument. It also inspired the nearby General Felix K. Zollicoffer Monument. Sadly, the original Zollie Tree was hit by lightning and destroyed in 1995. But a new, young tree grown from the old one was planted in the same spot.
Both the Confederate Mass Grave Monument and the Zollicoffer Monument are now part of a place called Zollicoffer Park. This park is inside the larger Mill Springs Battlefield National Monument.
A National Historic Place
On July 17, 1997, the Confederate Mass Grave Monument in Somerset was given a special honor. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This list includes important historical sites across the United States.
This monument was one of 61 different memorials related to the Civil War in Kentucky that were added to the list at the same time. The General Felix K. Zollicoffer Monument, which is only a few feet away, was also added. Another monument in Pulaski County on this list is the Battle of Dutton's Hill Monument, located north of Somerset, Kentucky.
Images for kids
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Closeup of the monument
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The burial mounds
