A century ago, the United Daughters of the Confederacy placed a time capsule in the base of the statue known as “Johnny Reb.” Now, they want it back.
Members say they put picture, flag in box a century ago
Current members of the group that a century ago placed a time capsule in the base of the Confederate statue known as “Johnny Reb” say they know what’s inside of it — and they’d like to have it back.
A picture of Gen. Robert E. Lee, Confederate money, a proclamation and a Confederate flag were placed in the small metal box when the statue was erected in 1911, Patricia Schnurr, of the United Daughters of the Confederacy Annie Coleman Chapter, said Thursday.
That chapter commissioned the memorial, which originally stood on Main Street — now Magnolia Avenue — before it was moved in 1917 to Lake Eola Park. It was moved from the park Tuesday and will be placed on display again at Greenwood Cemetery.
“We were the ones that put
it in there, so we think that we should get it back,” Schnurr said of the time capsule.
Cassandra Lafser, a spokeswoman for Mayor Buddy Dyer, said the city was aware of Schnurr’s request and working to set up a meeting, although no date had been arranged as of Thursday afternoon.
Lafser said the city was still researching what to do with the box, including how to open it without damaging its contents. The question of who the box belongs to will be a part of that research, she said.
“Once we complete this due diligence and establish this process, we will share this information with the community,” Lafser said.
Schnurr said she doubts the relics inside have survived intact. The roughly 11-inch-long metal box has rusted on the outside.
“But the thing about it is, we put it there,” she said. “We put the monument there, so we would like to have [the box] back, whether it’s any good or not. We want it back because it’s ours.”
Schnurr said the local United Daughters of the Confederacy chapter has not decided what to do with the time capsule if it’s returned to the group. It could be sent to the organization’s national headquarters in Richmond, Va., to be displayed with other relics, she said.
Mayor Buddy Dyer announced his plans to move the statue in May, after former Orlando Sentinel journalist David Porter and others called for its removal from the city’s central park, arguing it is a monument to racism and white supremacy.
Supporters of the statue say it honors dead soldiers, not slavery.
The city plans to rebuild the statue at the cemetery, in the plot for Confederate veterans. That process could take six weeks and cost upwards of $120,000, officials have said. The statue, which was disassembled for the move, is currently in storage.
The controversy over “Johnny Reb” comes as cities across the South are still grappling with whether to allow Confederate memorials to remain on display in the public square.
Hillsborough County leaders on Wednesday decided against moving a Confederate memorial that stands in front of a Tampa courthouse, opting instead to place a mural behind it dedicated to diversity.
Meanwhile, five protesters were arrested late Wednesday in the South Florida city of Hollywood, accused of disrupting a city commission discussion about whether to change the names of several streets named after Confederate generals. No decision was made.