Flower» ond »moll Confcdcrotc Hag» ogoin decorated the grove» of soldier» buried in the Confederate
Cemetery lost month, ond Kittrell citizen» held Confederate Memorial Ooy ceremonies a» they have
done for many year». — (T. H. Pearce photo». I
Kittrell Remembers
Once a vacation resort, the little town
became a refuge for Confederate
soldiers, tossed at tlieir door in the
agony of war.
By T. II. PEARCE
A marker stands beside U.S. I some
thirty-eight miles north of Raleigh, in
the small town of Kittrell, that reads.
"Confederate Cemetery.” If this should
arouse the curiosity of the passing mo¬
torists to the extent that they pause to
read the rest of the metal sign, erected
by the North Carolina Department of
Archives and History, they would dis¬
cover that here in this small Vance
County town, is located one of the few,
designated Confederate Cemeteries in
the state.
A small, well-maintained cemetery
with its four rows of small, marble
headstones, each marking the final rest¬
ing place of a Confederate soldier. One
of the few places in the world where the
memory of the Confederate soldier is
still honored with appropriate cere¬
mony on the Sunday nearest to Con¬
federate Memorial Day in May of each
year.
Л
Different Kind of Visitor
Kittrell Springs was located in Gran¬
ville County, prior to the formation of
Vance in I8K3, and in the years before
the War Between the States was
known primarily for the healing virtues
of the waters flowing from the springs
located there. This had resulted in the
construction of the Kittrell Springs
Hotel.
The war, of course, brought an end
to the influx of visitors who came to
"take the waters.” but brought a dif¬
ferent sort of visitor. First there were
the many Cavalrymen assigned to the
2nd North Carolina Cavalry Regiment
who were in training at Camp Clarke,
located near Kittrell Springs in the
summer of 1861. Then later, as the war
progressed, there were the wounded
and sick soldiers in the hospital there.
Located on the vital Raleigh and
Gaston Railroad, one of the most im¬
portant links between the battlefields
of Virginia and the rest of the Confcd-
A morlcr direct» vi»itors from U.S. I Highwoy.
eracy, it seemed only natural that a
hospital would be located there, a small
hospital to care for the sick and
wounded men who were too ill to con¬
tinue on their journey.
Hotel Became Hospital
The exact date of the hospital’s es¬
tablishment is unknown, but it has been
said that it came about almost acci¬
dentally. and as the outgrowth of a pa¬
triotic Confederate woman's ministra¬
tions to the sick and wounded. A Mrs.
Sarah Elliott opened her home to the
sick and wounded soldiers, but as ca¬
sualties mounted, the number of those
needing her care grew until her home
was overrun. When this occurred, the
spacious Kittrell Springs Hotel was
pressed into service and was listed as
General Hospital Number 1, Kittrell
Springs. N. C.
Since the nearest church to the hos¬
pital was the Episcopal Church, it was
only natural that the good people of
that congregation and their minister
looked after the spiritual needs of the
Confederate soldiers in the hospital.
Reverend James Ridley of Raleigh, the
pastor, kept a record of those who died
and were buried in the little cemetery,
and he held final services for many of
them.
Mrs. A. C. Husketh of Kittrell. and
a member of the church, has a copy of
Reverend Ridley’s journal which she
has kindly made available. It is from
this journal that we will now quote a
sampling of the brief statements written
about these soldiers of the Confederacy
who died for the cause in which they
believed so strongly:
(Л%
you read, please remember the
pronouns. “I." “me." and "my.” refer to
the Reverend Ridley.)
Waller Bagnall. 13th Virginia Cav¬
alry. Co. K. Admitted to the hospital
December 9. 1864. and died December
