Respect Stewart for hero he was
Removing the bust of Lt. Gen. A.P. Stewart from the Hamilton County Courthouse lawn would discount the many efforts made after the Civil War and Reconstruction from veterans of both sides to move sectional disagreements and resentments aside, and march forward as a unified nation.
A.P. Stewart’s story is one of a Tennessean who reluctantly took up arms against the union only to defend hearth and home; of an anti-slavery Southerner who had no stake in the evil institution; of a man who dedicated many years to the formation of our beloved Chickamauga-Chattanooga military park; of a university chancellor; of a civic leader; and of a man who was deeply respected by veterans on both sides of our bloody Civil War for his efforts to reconcile sons of the South with sons of the North.
Lt. Gen. Stewart’s bust could and should be seen by every elementary school student in Hamilton County as a symbol of what makes our community so strong: our willingness to move forward together as neighbors despite differences of background or affiliation.
W. Andrew Clark, Lookout Mountain, Tenn.