Confederate killed at Shiloh now has a local memorial

James Mason Anderson, whose body lies in a mass Confederate trench at Shiloh National Military Park, now rests in the folds of the flag of the Confederacy, in a memorial service preformed by the 37th Georgia Confederate Volunteer Infantry, who provided the honor guard.

Through the dedication of his family, the service took place Sunday, April 30, at the Williams Cemetery in Trion. A marker honoring his service was placed beside his wife Martha Odell Anderson, with a sizeable crowd attending.

The memorial service began with a prayer by Chaplin Mike Jones of the Hardee Guard Battalion.

Anderson’s greatgreat granddaughter Martha Schug gave the introduction, which included the reading of a lately discovered letter written by Anderson’s granddaughter Ruth Williams Giles that highlighted the Andersons’ life during and after the Civil War.

This was followed by a rendition of “Dixie” played on the harmonica, by Nelson Richardson who performed other period tunes. Keynote speaker, John Culpepper, the chairman of the Georgia Civil War Commission, spoke on the Battle Of Shiloh, which is also known as “The Battle of Pittsburg Landing”.

Afterwards, an 18-gun salute, the flag used during the ceremony was folded and presented to Jean Hendrix Bain, the oldest living Anderson ancestor in attendance.

The event concluded with prayer.

It is the hope of the family that others will honor their Confederate dead in a like manner, aided by the Sons of the Confederacy. “Least We Forget.”

Shown above are 37th Confederate Volunteer Infantry reenactors, an honor guard during the memorial service for James Mason Anderson held April 30, 2017, at Trion’s Williams Cemetery.