The Funeral of Jefferson Davis – by Calvin E. Johnson, Jr.

The one hundred fifteenth anniversary of the death of Jefferson Davis will take place on December 6, 2004. Many memorable observances will be sponsored to honor this American Icon.

Jefferson Davis graduated from West Point Military Academy, served valiantly during the War with Mexico, was Secretary of War under Franklin Pierce, was United States Senator from Mississippi and was President of the Confederate States of America. He also wrote "The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government."

Davis was the happiest, with wife Varina, at their last home that was called "Beauvoir." Beauvoir, today, is a memorial shrine to Jefferson Davis with museum and Presidential Lbrary. Located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast it is open daily.

Jefferson Davis left Beauvoir, in November 1889, on a trip to the plantation called Brierfield. There, he took care of family business. On the way through New Orleans the weather turned colder and he was exposed to the rain and cold. Davis came down with a severe cold and bronchitis that was further complicated by malaria.

Milo Cooper, a former servant to the Davis family, traveled the long distance from Florida when he heard that Davis was sick. It is written that, upon entering Davis' sick room in New Orleans, Louisiana, Cooper burst into tears and threw himself on his knees in prayer that God would spare the life of Davis and bless his family.

Varina was by her husband's side when Jefferson Davis died between 12:30 and 1:00 on the morning of December 6, 1889.

The news of Davis' death was front page news of many Southern newspapers. The praises and tributes read similar to this one from New Orleans:

"Throughout the South there are lamentations and tears; in every country on the globe where there are lovers of liberty there is mourning; wherever there are men who admire heroic patriotism; dauntless resolution, fortitude, or intellectual power and supremacy, there is sincere sorrowing. The beloved of our land, the unfaltering upholder of constitutional liberty, the typical hero and sage, is no more; the fearless heart that beats with sympathy for all mankind is stilled forever, a great light is gone-Jefferson Davis Is Dead"!

Varina Davis was said to have been in a state of shock over the death of her husband. Their daughter Margaret accepted the many letters of condolences that arrived, including telegrams from every governor of the former Confederate states. The first came from Louisiana's Governor Francis T. Nichols and Mississippi's Governor Robert Lowry.

The mortal body of Jefferson Davis laid in state at the city hall of New Orleans from midnight on December 6th to the 11th. He was dressed in Confederate gray and flowers adorned the city hall. Confederate flags and the Union flag were hung from above. Thousands of mourners came from out of town to join the residents of New Orleans to pay their respects to the man who once was the South's beloved leader. The men saluted their former leader and the women bowed their heads in prayer. Tears filled the eyes of young people who were born at the time Jefferson Davis was president of the Confederacy. The church bells rang throughout the city.

Those who served as honor guards at the city hall were men of the Army of Northern Virginia Association, the Army of Tennessee, and the Washington Artillery who were in constant attendance.

On December 11, 1889, twenty thousand people lined the streets of New Orleans as the body of Jefferson Davis was taken, by funeral carriage, to Metairie Cemetery in the crescent city. The funeral procession included those who wore the gray during the War Between the States. All flags flew at half mast. Metairie was a temporary burial site. In 1893, Davis was reburied in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia.

It is sad that the War Department of the United States did not lower the United States flag in his honor. Jefferson Davis was the only former Secretary of War who had ever been denied the honor.

Jefferson Davis, today, is studied and admired by those who believe in constitutional government and freedom.

A native of Georgia, Calvin Johnson lives near the historic town of Kennesaw, home of the locomotive "The General" from the War Between the States. His email is: cjohnson1861@bellsouth.net.

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The information for this letter comes from a article in the 1990, first quarter, edition of Southern Partisan Magazine. The article was entitled, "Jefferson Davis' Death" and was written by Peggy Robbins.

www.beauvoir.org
The story of Jefferson Davis' 1893 Funeral Train
Photos from first funeral in New Orleans
New Orleans Funeral procession of 200,000
Jefferson Davis' Birthday June 3
Book: Was Jefferson Davis Right?