On June 3, members of the Kirby-Smith Chapter 327 of the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) gathered at the Tullahoma Confederate Cemetery to commemorate Confederate Memorial Day.

June 3 is also the birth date of Jefferson Davis, who was the first and only president of the Confederate States of America. The nation was formed in 1861 by the secession from the Union of 11 southern states. Davis was born in 1808 near Fairview, K.Y. 

Chapter President Ginger Delius stated, “We are not only here to honor Jefferson Davis but all those who served in the Confederate military–whether they died in battle, suffered from dreaded diseases, were mangled with disabilities for the remainder of their lives, and those who never recovered from the horrible scenes of battle. In addition, let us give thought to our country’s military, both past and present as it protects us from domestic and foreign destruction.” 

Sheila Williams, the chapter’s Veterans Affairs Voluntary Services Representative, placed a wreath of green ivy leaves at the Confederate Memorial Monument. The ivy leaf is the symbolic flower of the Tennessee Division UDC. Delius, Williams and Chaplain Syble Throneberry placed small, First National Confederate flags at each Confederate state marker. 

Confederate Memorial Day is observed in several Southern U.S. states to remember the estimated 258,000 Confederate soldiers who died during the American Civil War.