Civil War in the Northwest?

As the debate rages over what to do with statues and memorials honoring Confederates in the wake of violence in Charlottesville, many people in the Pacific Northwest this week have been wondering why there would be any kind of Civil War monuments here at all.

Q and A: How the Lenin statue got to Fremont

“So how does the State of Washington, which (I believe) didn’t exist during the Civil War, have a Confederate Memorial?” wrote one commenter on Facebook a few days ago.

The truth is, Washington history and Civil War history are intertwined, and, in some cases, even inseparable. And, most Civil War monuments were dedicated in the 20th century, long after the war was over.

Some say they were meant to intimidate blacks during the “Jim Crow” era, while others say the timing was simply because aging Civil War vets – including those who had moved to the Pacific Northwest – were dying off, and their families were seeking to honor them.

Here are a few recent stories from MyNorthwest and other local outlets that provide a glimpse into how our state’s history influenced, and was influenced by, the Civil War.

• Washington State was named by Confederate sympathizer
• General McClellan failed in the Cascades
• Territorial Governor Isaac Stevens died a heroic death as a Union General
• Why there are so many Confederate monuments in Seattle
• Wrestling with the ghosts of Confederate monuments
• President Buchanan helped secure Oregon Country
• The Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.) Cemetery on Capitol Hill

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