The battalion hardly numbered more than five hundred men, but accounted for many times their number in killed, wounded, and captured of the enemy. If they had bothered to carry a guidon its battle streamers would have shown The Seven Days, Cedar Mountain, Brandy Station, Gettysburg, Mine Run, Wilderness, Trevilliam Station, The Cattle Raid, Petersburg and Five Forks. In addition to these were the countless unnamed skirmishes that occurred daily.
The 35th Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, led by the intrepid White, was truly one of the best fighting organizations in the Confederacy.
[Illustration: Confederate Monument in front of the Court House, Leesburg.]
IN MEMORY OF THE CONFEDERATE SOLDIERS OF LOUDOUN COUNTY VA. ERECTED MAY 28 1908
The very fine Confederate monument in front of the Courthouse in Leesburg is the work of an excellent and well known sculptor, F. William Siever of Richmond. The statute occupies a warm place in the hearts of the people of Loudoun. With the Courthouse, the clerk’s office and the lawn, it forms a unit that stands as a symbol of the government which has been carried on in the county since it was established in 1757.
The statue attracts much attention from tourists. It has become almost a daily occurrence to see a visitor photographing the Confederate Soldier.
I had the good fortune to be given two folders that give fascinating details of the activities of the Confederate Veterans and the Daughters of the Confederacy in years past. One was the program of the ceremony held at the unveiling of the monument on Thursday, May 28, 1908, and the committees responsible for its erection. The money to pay for the statue had been raised by the Daughters of the Confederacy. These were the members of the monument committee:
Mrs. John George Mrs. Agnes Summers Mrs. William N. Wise Mrs. E. G. Caufman Mrs. Sallie Fendall
John H. Alexander Lewis W. Shumate Geo. F. Everhart W. A. McFarland Peter F. Schroff
Paul Garrett John T. Hourihand J. H. Leslie Claude Van Sickler Clifton Myers
L. M. Shumate J. T. Hourihane E. B. White John L. Norris
All Committees and Escorts to Meet at Court House at 9:45 A. M.
10:30 A. M. Assemble in Court House. Prayer by Rev. F. P. Berkeley. Singing, “Maryland, My Maryland.” Presentation of Crosses of Honor. MARCH TO CEMETERY in the following order: MUSIC Sons of Confederate Veterans, Daughters of the Confederacy, Children of the Confederacy, Confederate Veterans, Citizens on foot, Citizens in Carriages. At Cemetery, Invocation by Rev. W. H. Burkhardt. Singing of Assembly, “Nearer, My God, to Thee.” Placing of Flowers on Graves. Return to Court House. 12 M. The President of the Loudoun Chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy will entertain the Veterans and Sons of Veterans at luncheon on the Court House Green. 1 P. M. Introduction of Speakers by Judge C. E. Nicols, Hon. Claude A. Swanson, Governor of Virginia, on behalf of Sons of Veterans. Col. Edmund Berkeley on behalf of Confederate Veterans. MUSIC Unveiling Speech by Hon. John W. Daniel, U. S. Senator from Virginia. Poem, Mr. Harry T. Harrison. Unveiling of Statue by Master Elijah V. White Assisted by Miss Mary H. Keeler, Middleburg Chapter D. of C. Miss Hannah B. McIntosh, Loudoun Chapter D. of C. Master Thos. F. Carruthers for Blue Ridge Chapter D. of C. MUSIC There will be a committee of ladies at the rooms of the Loudoun Chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy, over The Peoples National Bank, to entertain lady visitors. Music by courtesy of the Bluemont Band.