The Civil War Monument

The Civil War Monument. Perry County Bicentennial. , In 1898, a generation after the Civil War (1861-1865), Perry County citizens dedicated in New Bloomfield a monument to those soldiers and sailors who participated in that conflict to secure the Union and advance the freedom of all Americans., Members of the county's Grand Army of the Republic veteran posts and several thousand others gathered in a rainstorm on October 22, 1898, listened to speeches, observed a parade, and unveiled the 45 1/2-foot-stall statue saluting those who served., Authorized in 1897 by the County Court for the sum of $10,000, a stupendous amount in that day, a contract was awarded to the company of Edward Gallagher, Jr. of Philadelphia., On September 17, 1898, an airtight, tin box was placed without ceremony within the monument space. The time capsule contents included a list of those who died in the war, names of local veterans from all American wars to that time, a New Testament, representative newspapers, a list of elected officials, and a rock and peach from the Gettysburg battlefield., Among the dignitaries speaking on Dedication Day was Andrew K. McClure, Perry County native and confidential advisor to President Abraham Lincoln. Bands played and veterans marched., With so many visitors in town, local citizens were deputized to keep order. That evening, their presence was put to service when rowdies disturbed the peace., The 1898 Capsule , In 1998, the community hosted a grand parade celebrating the monument's centennial birthday. However high school students, history teachers, Civil War Bucktail reenactors armed with shovels and an expert utilizing a magnetometer failed to uncover the elusive 1898 box! The community buried a new time capsule to be opened in 2048.