A monument to the soldiers of the South during the War of 1861 sits like a sentinel, overlooking the Gulf coast city of Pensacola. Resting atop a commanding hill on what is probably the highest point of Palafox Street, the monument is a message to all of the heritage and identity of those inhabiting Florida’s Panhandle.

Stephen Mallory, a Senator from Florida and the first Catholic to sit in an American presidential cabinet (as President Jefferson Davis’ Secretary of the Navy), is expressly mentioned on the monument for his service to the South. He is buried in the nearby St Michael’s cemetery.

Let us especially remember this day those Southerners who fought in defense of kith and kin against the aggressions of a dictatorial power.