Confederate Cemetery

Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina

Introduction

When I first presented the idea of documenting the Confederate Cemetery to Mrs. Mary-Julia Royall, the first words I said were: "As you know, the Confederate Cemetery is falling apart..." I was not able to get any farther before I was cut off with "No, it's not." Such was the beginning of a beneficial relationship that remained throughout of the project, Mrs. Royall instructing the faithful student in the ways of history, preservation, and understanding.

I think that this project has taught me more about the ways of preserving history than my proper education has. It was not a lesson only in the way history runs itself, but more of a lesson in how it is recorded, how it is understood, and how it is preserved. The Confederate Cemetery's history is one that is not as well documented as it could be. A few bits here and there combined with the knowledge of Mrs. Royall were all that I could work from, although it seems that it was enough to create a history worth repeating. So, to the ages, this story has now been told, written down by a student whose goal was merely to get a badge.

So, to the ages, I hope this means more to you than it did, at first, to me.

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