The North Carolina Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans is proud to announce the unveiling of the first of its “mega flags” as part of the Flags Across the Carolinas project.
The flag was raised on Wednesday, April 26, 2017, between exits 65 and 61 on Interstate 95 south, just north of Fayetteville. April 26th was chosen because on this date in 1865, Charlotte, North Carolina, became the Confederate States of America’s last official Capital city. This was as President Jefferson Davis’s party, containing some three thousand Confederate cavalry, five brigadier generals, the remaining members of his cabinet and aides, along with five wagons and several ambulances, continued its journey southward following the surrender of Richmond.
The flag site will be dedicated as The General Theophilus Hunter Holmes Confederate Memorial Site and Cemetery. With this name, we are honoring General Holmes, a native North Carolinian and local resident, who was the senior officer from North Carolina during the War Between the States. He is buried at McPherson Presbyterian Church in Fayetteville. Members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans will be eligible for internment onsite and gravesites will be available for purchase.
The large flag being flown at the site sits approximately ninety feet high and overlooks Interstate 95 for all passersby to enjoy. The flag, a Confederate Army of Tennessee Battle Flag pattern, measures twenty by thirty feet.
The flag and property were acquired and will be maintained by the North Carolina Division. Several other sites are being considered across the state and more flags honoring our ancestors will be raised along major roads and highways in the near future. The North Carolina Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans, a non-profit corporation, is now accepting donations of land or monies to further expand our Flags Across the Carolinas project.
R. Kevin Stone, Commander