Austin, Texas

The Lone Star Flag is Very Much Alive!  The Lone Star Flag is very much alive in cemeteries all over Texas. Here it honors the man who created an organization called Celebrate Texas, which is dedicated to the celebration of Texas Independence Day on March 2. In 1836, Texas issued its own Declaration of Independence: from Mexico. Texas State Cemetery. [2009]

Norfolk, Virginia

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  Thirteen stars imposed on St. Andrew's Cross. The idea of the cross came from Scotland and the deep history of Christian Europe. The idea of the stars came directly from the flag of the United States of America. There is one theory of the Civil War that suggests it is nothing more than the rivalry between the English and the Scots transplanted to the New World. The North was settled primarily by migrants from England, and the South was settled primarily by the Scotch-Irish from Northern Ireland. Cedar Grove Cemetery. [2012]

Bealeton, Virginia

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  He surely didn't fight in the Civil War, but his Confederate battle flag will live on as long as the granite survives. Don't you wish the flag were accurate, though? It has 14 stars rather than 13. Although the C.S.A. had only 11 member states, the battle flag (a part of the C.S.A. flag after 1863) had 13 stars. History says that the other two starts were for two of the border states. Nonsense! There had to be 13 stars, no less, because the first flag of the United States of America had 13, one for each of the original states. Parity achieved! Cedar Grove Cemetery. [2010]

Macon, Georgia

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  The Confederate battle flag, like death itself, serves as a great equalizer. It marks the graves of Johnny Rebs and Generals as well. Here's the grave of a General who didn't survive the Civil War. He died at the Battle of Port Gibson, with only 30 years to his credit. Though young when he died, he is honored with an historical marker right beside his grave. Oak Ridge Cemetery. [2015]

Waycross, Georgia

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  He was born in 1841, so he would have been in his prime, his early 20s, when he served in the Civil War. With the first name John, he literally was a "Johnny Reb." He obviously survived, and the records say he became a minister in the Presbyterian Church. His grave boasts a foot stone and a body stone in a rather unusual combination. The body stones in this section of the cemetery may be mid-20th century additions to the landscape. Could they go back to the Civil War centennial in the 1960s? Oakland Cemetery. [2007]

Frederick, Maryland

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  In the Confederate section of Frederick's famous rural cemetery, the battle flag seems an appropriate honor for those who died in the Battle of Antietam or as a result of wounds sustained there. These markers honor both known and unknown soldiers. The original headstones have been supplemented by new ones: only the date of death is recorded. All of these died in September 1862. Mt. Olivet Cemetery. [2010]

Hampton,Virginia

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  On the left is what everyone thinks is the official flag of the Confederate States of America. On the right is the flag that actually was the official flag of the Confederacy, or at least the earliest one of them. It was known as the "stars and bars" and was judged to be too much like the "stars and stripes" for easy differentiation when used in battle. The stone says "Our Confederate Dead," but it could as easily say "Confederate States of America," which was born in 1861 and died in 1865. Oakland Cemetery. [2012]

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  Here lies a woman who was born two generations after the Civil War, yet she carries a Confederate battle flag on her headstone. She probably didn't see it as a symbol of hate, but that is what it has become. Even the U.S. Congress, in 2016, passed legislation banning its use in national cemeteries. Magnolia Cemetery. [2011]

Milledgeville, Georgia

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  Here lies a soldier who fought in the Civil War. He has an old headstone from the 19th century and a new one from the 20th century. He also has a Confederate battle flag marking his grave. It is likely that the new headstone and the battle flag are meant not to keep his memory alive, but to keep the memory of the Civil War itself alive. Make sure you catch the name of the cemetery. Memory Hill Cemetery. [2015]

Chester, Virginia

The Confederate Battle Flag Lives On:  And, you can find it in cemeteries, especially those in the old Confederate States of America. This isn't the flag of the Confederacy, which had three official flags, but rather a flag of battle. Its life ended with the end of the rebellion in 1865, but it was resurrected as a symbol of lost identity during the second half of the 20th century. Sunset Memorial Park. [2007]

Louisville, Kentucky

Celebrating the Flag and the Fourth with Music:  Independence Day stirs feelings of patriotism even in cemeteries, where American flags seem to be the perfect complement to holiday celebrations. When you see them, you may think of some [questionably] patriotic tunes that fit the mood of the day. What's this one?
     "But your flag decal won't get you
     Into Heaven any more,
     They're already overcrowded
     From your dirty little war.
     Now Jesus don't like killin'
     No matter what the reason for,
     And your flag decal won't get you
     Into Heaven any more."
Recognize it? If not click here. Evergreen Cemetery. [2016]

Marion, Illinois

Celebrating the Flag and the Fourth with Music:  Independence Day stirs feelings of patriotism even in cemeteries, where American flags seem to be the perfect complement to holiday celebrations. When you see them, you may think of some patriotic tunes that fit the mood of the day. What's this one?
     "Tonight I dare you to dream
     Go on to believe impossible things
     Whenever anybody says
     There's anything we can't do
     I mean after all
     There's an American flag on the moon"
 Recognize it? If not click here. Marion City Cemetery. [2015]

Zanesville, Ohio

Celebrating the Flag and the Fourth with Music:  Independence Day stirs feelings of patriotism even in cemeteries, where American flags seem to be the perfect complement to holiday celebrations. When you see them, you may think of some patriotic tunes that fit the mood of the day. What's this one?
      "You're a grand old flag,
     You're a high flying flag
     And forever in peace may you wave.
     You're the emblem of
     The land I love,
     The home of the free and the brave."
Recognize it? If not click here. Woodland Cemetery. [2013]

Guymon, Oklahoma

Celebrating the Flag and the Fourth with Music:  Independence Day stirs feelings of patriotism even in cemeteries, where American flags seem to be the perfect complement to holiday celebrations. When you see them, you may think of some patriotic tunes that fit the mood of the day. What's this one?
     "Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
     O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
     And the rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
     Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
     Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
     O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
Recognize it? If not click here. Elmhurst Cemetery. [2013]

Beckley, West Virginia

Celebrating the Flag and the Fourth with Music:  Independence Day stirs feelings of patriotism even in cemeteries, where American flags seem to be the perfect complement to holiday celebrations. When you see them, you may think of some patriotic tunes that fit the mood of the day. What's this one?
     "She's been burned, dishonored, denied an' refused
     And the government for which she stands
     Has been scandalized throughout the land
     And she's getting thread bare, and she's wearin' thin
     But she's in good shape for the shape she's in
     'Cause she's been through the fire before
     And I believe she can take a whole lot more"
Recognize it? If not click here. Blue Ridge Memorial Gardens. [2014]