Manatee’s Confederate statue is still hidden. Officials are set to decide its fate Tuesday
Nearly two years after county officials decided to remove a Confederate statue from the historic courthouse, commissioners may decide its fate on Tuesday.
Commissioner Priscilla Whisenant Trace told her fellow board members at the end of Thursday’s meeting that she’s been looking into possible locations for the monument.
“It has to be county-owned, respectful and educational,” said Trace, who apparently wasn’t the only one doing her own research into where the 95-year-old memorial should be located.
During her briefing from county staff on Monday, Commissioner Vanessa Baugh was surprised to hear that a commissioner was working on relocating the statute that pays homage to key Confederate figures of the Civil War, including Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson and Jefferson Davis.
Baugh mentioned that she had been in contact with the local Confederacy heritage groups about her effort to move the monument from its hiding place near the Lake Manatee Dam.
“Obviously, we need to find something. We can’t just leave it where it is forever,” Baugh said. “Let’s deal with it and get it taken care of.”
By a 4-3 vote in August 2017, the board decided to remove the statue just one day after hundreds of protesters marched on the courthouse demanding the monument be taken down. While crews moved it overnight, the memorial snapped in half, and it would cost around $44,000 to repair when it’s installed at a new location.
Local southern heritage groups have been critical of the county’s handling of the monument relocation, and have accused them of sweeping the issue under the rug. Commissioners previously agreed to move the statue to an “equally prominent and respectful place” during a future public hearing.
At Tuesday’s commissioner meeting, Trace said she would discuss her proposal. Trace didn’t give many clues about the opportunities she would discuss, but Baugh hinted one of the options would send the statue to the First White House of the Confederacy site in Montgomery, Ala. Another option might be a site in East Manatee.
“We promised the citizens this is not going to go away. It needs to be somewhere respectful and it will be put back up, so I’m glad we’re finally doing something about this,” said Commissioner Carol Whitmore.
According to the agenda for the May 7 meeting, the Confederate statue location will be discussed at 1:30 p.m at the Manatee County Administrative Center, 1112 Manatee Ave. W.
Commissioners Stephen Jonsson and Baugh are two current board members who voted against its initial removal.
This story was originally published May 2, 2019 at 6:39 PM.