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Tag: Carl Hunsinger

Veterans Park, Bradenton

Letter affirms Confederate monument opposition

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News, Manatee County.

BRADENTON – Manatee County commissioners face opposition by the Manatee County Veteran’s Council to placing a historic Confederate monument in Veterans Park.

Veterans Council chairman Carl Hunsinger sent County Commission Chairwoman Betsy Benac a two-page letter on Oct. 21 detailing the council’s position.

“As you are no doubt aware, the Manatee County Veterans Council has had a number of spirited discussions regard the County Commission’s recommendation to relocate the Confederate statue previously located at the historic courthouse to either Veterans Park or to Gamble Plantation Historic Park. The Veterans Council cannot endorse the commission’s current recommendation,” Hunsinger’s letter began.

The local Judah P. Benjamin Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy erected the memorial monument in 1924. In August, the county commission ordered the monument be removed from its location in front of the Manatee County Historic Courthouse that serves as the Clerk of the Court’s office.

Confederate Monument and Courthouse
The memorial Confederate monument stood in front of the historic courthouse in downtown Bradenton until Aug. 24, 2017. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The commission requested the removal due to public safety concerns raised before and after a large protest took place in the courthouse square. The granite monument was damaged and fractured while being removed. It is currently being stored in an undisclosed location until county commissioners decide where to put it next. The plan is to repair the monument after it’s moved to its new location.

Hunsinger’s letter noted the Veterans Council represents approximately 40,000 veterans who are also county voters.

“With the Veterans Council responsibility to protect the original intent for Veterans Park, ensuring that only veterans serving the uniformed services of the United States of America be honored, and only those individuals from Manatee County would have their names memorialized on the walls, statues or memorials contained within Veterans Park. And please remember, these walls, statues and monuments were funded by private donations,” the letter states.

“Throughout our discussions, we have focused not only on what is best for Veterans Park, but also what is best for Manatee County. With the contentious nature of this issue, we believe there is significant risk of damage to present monuments, plaques, etc. contained within Veterans Park should the Confederate statue be relocated there. This, along with other issues, formed the basis for the overwhelming majority of council members to not endorse the county commission recommendation. However, our non-concurrence does not mean we do not have a recommendation. The council believes commission was on the right track in proposing relocation of the statue to Gamble Plantation Historic Park. Therefore, the Veterans Council strongly urges the county commissioners to expeditiously move forward and work with the State of Florida on relocating the statue to Gamble Plantation,” Hunsinger’s letter concludes.

County Commissioner Carol Whitmore said county officials have been in contact with state officials about the Gamble Mansion location.

“We are waiting to hear back from them,” she said last week.

Gamble Mansion
The Gamble Mansion in Palmetto is open for guided tours six days a week. – FloridaStateParks.org | Submitted

The Gamble Plantation Historic Park website says it is believed that Confederate Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin took refuge in the mansion after the fall of the South, until he could arrange for safe passage to England. In 1925, the United Daughters of the Confederacy saved the mansion and the 16 acres of land it stands on in Ellenton.

Guided tours are now given six days a week.

Vets reject Confederate monument

Veterans Council rejects monument relocation

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News, Manatee County.

BRADENTON – The Manatee County Veterans Council opposes a Confederate monument being relocated to Veterans Park, near the Bradenton Riverwalk.

The 16-1 opposition vote took place Thursday, Oct. 19, at American Legion Kirby Stewart Post 24 in Bradenton.

Before being removed in August, the displaced memorial monument stood for nearly a century in the courtyard square. That square is shared by the Manatee County Clerk of the Court’s office and the Manatee County Judicial Center in downtown Bradenton.

“We’re not in position to approve it or disapprove it, but we’re going to tell the commissioners what we want and don’t want,” Veterans Council Chair Carl Hunsinger said before the council members voted.

“If there’s a legal decision made and we don’t have a choice, then we’ll have to come up with another plan as to where we’re going to have our Veterans Park located – and maybe that statue will stand by itself.” – Carl Hunsinger, Veterans Council

The Manatee County Veterans Council represents more than 40,000 veterans in and around the county. Member organizations include local American Legion, VFW and AMVETS posts and other veteran-affiliated groups.

“There doesn’t need to be any more discussion. We talked about it last month,” Hunsinger said before calling for the vote.

The monument relocation was debated at the council’s previous meeting. An informal straw poll indicated 48 attendees opposed the Veterans Park location and four or five supported it. Council members were then asked to solicit official consensus from their respective groups prior to a formal vote on the 19th. Members were also asked to return with proposed alternative locations.

“The board of county commissioners could say you don’t have the authority to make that decision, but they’ve given us the opportunity to give them our recommendation,” Hunsinger told the voting members.

Peggy Van Gemert, from the Sarasota Manatee Chapter of the American Merchant Marine Veterans, suggested the 1850 Old Manatee Burying Grounds on 15th Street in Bradenton.

Representing the VFW Auxiliary in Ellenton, Theresa Cobb recommended the Gamble Plantation Historic State Park in Ellenton; a move that would require state approval.

After the votes were cast, Hunsinger said, “We do not accept the monument for our Veterans Park and that’s what we’re going to tell our Board of County Commissioners.”

Hunsinger said a letter would be drafted stating the council’s position and sent to the county commission.

A monumental decision

The United Daughters of the Confederacy erected the memorial monument in 1924 and it became the subject of local debate in August after a Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Va. resulted in one death and several violent conflicts.

Confederate Memorial at Manatee County Courthouse H1 082317 JH
The Confederate memorial stood in front of the Manatee County Historic Courthouse. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

On Aug. 21, a protest took place near the monument that had been shrouded in plywood for protective purposes.

On Aug. 22, Manatee County Commissioners voted to remove the monument due to public safety concerns; at that time, Veterans Park and Gamble Plantation were mentioned as possible alternate locations. No date was disclosed for the dismantling.

Overnight on Aug. 24, the work crew removing the granite monument dropped it and fractured it into two or three large pieces. The monument is now stored in an undisclosed location and the plan is to repair and reassemble it on site at its new location, wherever that may be.

Hunsinger’s take

When interviewed prior to the Oct. 19 meeting, Hunsinger said, “The concern is our Veterans Park has been set aside for veterans that raised their right hand in defense of these United States and its Constitution. It’s for veterans who served under the United States of America. The Confederacy was another country, or another government. All those soldiers fought for that country after they seceded,” Hunsinger said.

Vets Council chair Carl Hunsinger
Veterans Council chair Carl Hunsinger addressed member voters before the monument vote took place. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Veterans Park honors those who served in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Desert Shield and Desert Storm, but no conflicts in the 1800s.

“We’re not going to protest. We’re not going to be distractive. If we say it doesn’t go in our park and the Board of County Commissioners says it should, then we’re going to use legal means to back our decision. If there’s a legal decision made and we don’t have a choice, then we’ll have to come up with another plan as to where we’re going to have our Veterans Park located – and maybe that statue will stand by itself,” Hunsinger said.