Resident urges county action on Confederate monument; commissioners say monument is not county property

A Hart County resident urged commissioners on June 24 to press for replacement of a Confederate monument removed from the county square a decade ago, and to take a stronger role honoring Confederate soldiers he said are interred in the county.

Ty Thompson, who identified himself as a Hart County resident, delivered an extended public comment asking the board to compel or otherwise work with local groups to reinstall a Confederate monument. "I love the veterans of this county," Thompson said. He told the board he had documented "191 souls" who he said were Confederate veterans and said he had asked commissioners eight months earlier to press the local organization that previously maintained the monument.

Thompson criticized the local chapter that he said controlled the monument and said at one point that a local donor had been refused. He asked the county to use its authority over courthouse property and county funds to ensure those veterans are publicly honored.

Commissioners responded by clarifying the county’s legal position. "The way I understand that Mister Thompson is that, the monument is not the county's. That monument is their responsibility," the chairman said during public comment, adding, "We have voted for them to put the monument back up." Another commissioner said county staff would examine the legal question and report back: "Let me look at it offline," a commissioner said, offering to follow up through staff or the county attorney.

Why it matters: the exchange illustrates an unresolved local dispute over monuments and the limits of county authority. Residents seeking action from local government face constraints when a private group retains ownership or control of a memorial sited on or near public property.

What the board said it could and could not do: commissioners told the public that, while the county controls the courthouse grounds, the particular Confederate monument referenced in public comment is maintained by a private organization (the speaker named the United Daughters of the Confederacy). Commissioners said the board has granted permission in the past for that organization to reinstall a monument but cannot unilaterally compel the private group to act.

Next steps: commissioners said they would review the matter further with staff and provide guidance outside the meeting. No formal motion or vote was taken regarding the monument during the session.

Public comment context: Thompson's remarks ran through historical assertions and were focused on memorialization of Confederate soldiers; the chairman and other commissioners limited the county’s immediate role to legal review and clarification of ownership.