{"id":131969,"date":"2023-08-08T00:05:42","date_gmt":"2023-08-08T04:05:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thecollegefix.com\/?p=131969"},"modified":"2023-08-07T16:01:16","modified_gmt":"2023-08-07T20:01:16","slug":"canceled-washington-lee-university-removes-plaque-honoring-robert-e-lees-horse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thecollegefix.com\/canceled-washington-lee-university-removes-plaque-honoring-robert-e-lees-horse\/","title":{"rendered":"Canceled: Washington & Lee University removes plaque honoring Robert E. Lee\u2019s horse"},"content":{"rendered":"

Traveller, the horse which served Confederate General Robert E. Lee, has long been a fixture of campus culture at Washington and Lee University, as the famous steed, known for his courage and stamina, is buried on campus.<\/p>\n

But Traveller\u2019s Confederate connections recently led university officials to remove two markers erected in his honor, his gravestone as well as a plaque honoring the beloved companion.<\/p>\n

The decision prompted anger and concern from some alumni and students. Traveller served<\/a> Lee both during the Civil War and afterwards, when the ex-general became president of the then-Washington College. Lee was president from 1865 until his death in 1871. Traveller died a few months later.<\/p>\n

The university replaced one marker \u2013 Traveller\u2019s gravestone \u2013 with a version omitting the original references to Lee and the United Daughters of the Confederacy.<\/p>\n

In a July 16 response to community concerns, university officials said they would also replace the plaque they stripped from a campus building, which had noted Traveller\u2019s last home and was a visible part of the campus environment.<\/p>\n

As of Aug. 7, the plaque has yet to be replaced.<\/p>\n

The original marker stated: \u201cThe last home of Traveller. Through war and peace the faithful, devoted and beloved horse of General Robert Lee. Placed by the Virginia Division, United Daughters of the Confederacy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The modifications follow a June 2021 decision by the small, private liberal arts college to retain its name while further distancing itself from the Confederacy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have reviewed campus symbols, names and practices, and we are making changes to remove doubt about our separation from the Confederacy and the Lost Cause,\u201d the university\u2019s board of trustees stated<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But the horse is a campus icon.<\/p>\n

\"\"\u201cTraveller was a beloved part of the campus story,\u201d said Kamron Spivey, president of Students for Historical Preservation, in an email to The College Fix.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPeople like to hear tales about animals because they do no wrong. That is how Traveller has been immortalized in campus history,\u201d Spivey said. \u201cHe was a faithful horse whose beauty and loyalty Robert E. Lee said would inspire poets. Until this month, very few people seemed bothered by the horse.\u201d<\/p>\n

One campus tradition is to place apples and pennies beside Traveller\u2019s gravestone.<\/p>\n

The apples are \u201cbecause horses like apples,\u201d Spivey said, and the \u201cpennies are sort of a shot at Lincoln and the Union, placing the coin tails-up so that Lincoln is essentially kissing the grave of a horse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, Spivey said, Traveller is primarily known as the name of the university\u2019s party bus: the Traveller Safe Ride Program<\/a> (colloquially \u201cTrav\u201d) provides students with transportation on party nights.<\/p>\n

News of the changes was first reported<\/a> by the alternate campus newspaper, the W&L Spectator<\/em>, on July 12, igniting passions on social media. Comments on the Spectator\u2019s<\/em> content were generally critical of the university\u2019s choices.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, the university released a statement<\/a> after receiving \u201ca number of questions about the decision to relocate four historical plaques.\u201d<\/p>\n

W&L also removed two plaques from an academic building. One marked where Lee was sworn in as the school\u2019s president, and the other denoted the room which served as his first office space while president.<\/p>\n

The university said the four original plaques would be featured in a new exhibit titled \u201cThe Power of Memory: Remembering Robert E. Lee.\u201d<\/p>\n

The changes are \u201cpart of a carefully considered series of steps to create educational exhibits and place Confederate artifacts in those exhibits and in context,\u201d the university said in its statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cWashington and Lee University is an educational institution. Its campus is neither a museum nor an appropriate repository for Confederate artifacts, and as such, the Board determined that a number of plaques on campus should be relocated to a museum to be appropriately interpreted,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n

In an email to The Fix<\/em>, university spokesperson Drewry Sackett said the decision to relocate the plaques was made over a year ago.<\/p>\n

But Spivey said the new developments are \u201cyet another of the university administration\u2019s attempt[s] to completely ignore the civil war and Robert E. Lee.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDue to a misappreciation of Lee\u2019s contributions and positive legacy as an educator, university officials think any reference to the man is detracting from student enrollment. Rather than confront the issue directly, they are trying to secretly hide their history from the world,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201c[T]he university should keep the original markers,\u201d Spivey continued. \u201cIf the goal is to contextualize a historic site, there is no better place than the original location they were erected.\u201d<\/p>\n

MORE: Review The College Fix’s<\/em> Campus Cancel Culture Database<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

IMAGE: Main photo by Kamron Spivey\/ W&L Spectator<\/em><\/p>\n

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