Now you see them ... now you don't. Civil War markers sometimes are casualties to manmade and natural forces. In Georgia, a historical society and volunteers make them whole

Marker in 2008 (Photo by Felch Dumas, HMdb.org) and remnants of post, near stop sign (Picket photo)

It’s not easy being a historical marker. The elements take the shine off you, things fall from the sky, people sometimes want you moved and – worst of all – motor vehicles can take you out at any moment.

One of those casualty situations recently occurred in an Atlanta neighborhood. The “Battle of Atlanta Began Here” sign, detailing how marching Federal troops chanced into a surprise Confederate assault on July 22, 1864, was either hit by a vehicle or a downed power pole, said Henry Bryant, a local preservationist.

Like other safekeeping custodians of damaged markers in the area, Bryant is working with the Georgia Historical Society to see that repairs are made and the sign is put back up.

But that takes time, funding and the proper materials, depending on whether the sign, its pole or both are damaged.

A couple miles from where Bryant and a tour led by the Battle of Atlanta Commemoration Organization (B*ATL) encountered the damaged sign on July 18 is a spot where a suspected drunken driver knocked down another Civil War marker.

Marker before it was hit by car (Photo by Felch Dumas, HMdb.org) and in storage (David Mitchell)

This one, with the mesmerizing title “Noon Under the Trees,” details how Union Maj. Gen. James B. McPherson met for lunch with other commanders before riding toward the sound of gunfire, only to be killed a short time later.

The DeKalb Avenue marker was damaged a few years ago and is currently being kept by David Mitchell, executive director of the Atlanta Preservation Center, until it can be repaired. The base, where the post is inserted into the sign, is gone, Mitchell said.

James McPherson

“The marker is on the Georgia Historical Society’s list of projects to be addressed in the future,” said Elyse Butler, the organization’s marker manager. “Due to the damage marker collar, it will certainly need to be recast prior to reinstallation.”

The state of Georgia ran the Georgia historical marker program from the 1950s until the mid-1990s. The historical society began to erect new markers in 1998. GHS took over the coordination for maintaining the older state markers in 2015, Butler said.

“As such, we are currently working through the state’s backlog of marker projects. While it may take some time to address the damaged marker (Noon Under the Trees), please be assured a plan for replacing the marker is currently under review.”

Charlie Crawford, president emeritus of the Georgia Battlefields Association, has led countless tours of area Civil War sites and is very familiar with pertinent historical markers.

It was common for 50-60 historical markers to be in a state maintenance shop awaiting repairs in the mid-1990s, he said. They came from around Georgia, but the highest concentration was from metro Atlanta, scene of the worst traffic.

“I feel comfortable saying that more markers were victims of vehicle collisions in the Atlanta area than elsewhere around the state. Often, the aluminum markers would survive a vehicle collision but the posts would not, so not all markers would need repair, but they might languish in storage until resources -- i.e., workers, materials, and funds -- were available,” Crawford wrote in an email.

Another view of damaged Clay Street sign post near utility pole (Picket photo)

Sometimes, markers are moved, Crawford says. They can be precipitated by road widenings or homeowners who want them to be relocated because people walk through their lawns to view them. And motor vehicles are a constant threat.

“The Surrender of Atlanta” marker that was at the V-intersection of Northside Drive and Marietta Street was knocked over so frequently that it was moved to the west side of Marietta Street. A Georgia Tech alumni and businessman paid for the relocation, Crawford said. When it ran the marker program, the cash-strapped state increasingly turned to donations for maintenance.

A homeowner in Kennesaw, northwest of Atlanta in Cobb County, does not mind having a marker in his yard but would like it relocated a few yards away so that it doesn’t block his view of traffic when trying to exit his driveway,” said Crawford.

In 2010, the Picket wrote about a Civil War marker that mysteriously ended up a few miles from its original location. The sign, which details the movements of the Federal left wing in Decatur in 1864, had been missing for some time. The state picked it up and the marker eventually was reinstalled at the proper location near Interstate 285.

Volunteers expect to have this sign back up soon (Henry Bryant)

Back in East Atlanta, Bryant is coordinating the return of the Battle of Atlanta marker to its longtime home on Clay Street near Memorial Drive. All that currently remains of the marker is half of its shattered post, rebar jutting from the exposed end.

“The sign was not significantly damaged. The post was a near total loss. The power pole is still on the ground at the site. Fortunately, I had another post for the marker,” he said in an email.

He has located a power auger and will work with volunteers to make the repairs and installation. “At this point a schedule for completion is a matter of logistics.”

Bryant described what can happen when a sign needs to be fixed or replaced. The “Bate’s Battle Line” sign a couple blocks east on Memorial Drive is listed by the GHS as missing.

McPherson monument in East Atlanta (Henry Bryant)

The post he will use for the “Battle of Atlanta Began Here” repair was initially intended for the Bate marker. “We have had the money to recast that sign, but had run into issues with obtaining property owner permission. Now a new (grocery) store is being built at that location.”

A traffic accident last year damaged the fence to an East Atlanta monument where McPherson was killed. Two volunteers reconstructed the fence's pipe rails and masonry posts, Bryant said in email.