Our Confederate Dead
Confederate Home of Missouri Cemetery
The Confederate Home Cemetery is the final resting place for more than 800 people. It was established early in the history of the Confederate Soldiers Home of Missouri.
The first interment was in 1891; the last occurred in 1950 when John T. Graves, the last resident Confederate veteran, died at age 108. His headstone is simply inscribed, "JOHN T. GRAVES, THE LAST OF SHELBY'S MEN."
The United Daughters of the Confederacy erected the large granite monument that dominates the cemetery in June 1906. Designed by sculptor M.H. Rice of Kansas City, it was constructed of Vermont Barre granite. The monument cost $5,000 and was dedicated to all who served the Confederacy.
The statue was inspired by the Lion of Lucerne statue in Lucerne, Switzerland, which commemorates the Swiss Guards massacred by a mob while protecting the French King Louis the XVI during the French Revolution. Rice deemed the lion, mortally wounded yet proud and defiant, as an appropriate symbol for the Confederacy.
The lion's forepaw rests upon the Seal of the Confederacy, which features a mounted George Washington surrounded by a wreath of agricultural products vital to the south. The United Daughters of the Confederacy emblem is centered directly below the lion and set against the various Confederate flags. The monument was unveiled on June 2, 1906, to
this page online
[Photo caption reads]
The superintendent of the home and other dignitaries at the dedication of the monument.
"Step lightly near this sacred spot,
and move with solemn tread,
For this is consecrated soil,
Where sleep our honored dead!
The sunlight shimmers through the boughs
Of shadowy forest trees,
Nature weeps here, her silent tears,
A requiem sighs the breeze,
When the tall grasses gently wave,
the wild flowers lift its head,
As if its tribute sweet,
to bring to our Confederate dead,...
Elizabeth Ustick McKinney, 1894
Erected by Missouri State Parks.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Patriots & Patriotism. A significant historical year for this entry is 1891.
Location. 39° 5.916′ N, 93° 43.774′ W. Marker is in Higginsville, Missouri, in Lafayette County. It is on 1st Street 0.4 miles north of Business Missouri Route 13, on the left when traveling north. Marker is just inside the cemetery entrance at the Confederate Memorial State Historic Site. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Higginsville MO 64037, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Missouri River Corridor. It is also in the American Midwest, in the Lewis & Clark Corridor, in the Corn Belt, and on the Santa Fe Trail Corridor. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, the Louisiana Purchase, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers.
Other markers no longer nearby. Cottage Row [and] The Confederate Home Chapel (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); The Confederate Home of Missouri (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed).
Also see . . .
1. Confederate Memorial State Historic Site MO. Missouri State Parks website entry (Submitted on November 28, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
2. Confederate Home Cemetery at Find A Grave. (Submitted on November 28, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
3. United Daughters of the Confederacy. (Submitted on November 28, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
Credits. This page was last revised on December 15, 2025. It was originally submitted on November 28, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 707 times since then and 29 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. submitted on November 28, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.
