Raising the Shade members (from left) Joe Menefee and Glenna Moore, with First Baptist Church Pastor Chris Coates, Patrick Lindsey and Larry Moore, broke ground in September for the foundation that will hold a monument honoring 70 Franklin County men who served in the United States Colored Troops during the Civil War.
Nearly three years ago, Glenna Moore spoke at a Franklin County Board of Supervisors meeting and requested a monument be erected to honor 70 county residents who served in the United States Colored Troops during the Civil War.
Sculptors Paul DiPasquale, second from right, and Rick Weaver, left, spoke with members of the Raising the Shade monument committee during a visit to the historic First Baptist Church in Rocky Mount in 2024.
Rocky Mount's original First Baptist Church has been a keystone of the Black community for 131 years. After falling into disrepair, it's getting new life.
Glenna Moore spoke out in 2023 in favor of an unsuccessful effort to remove the Confederate memorial at the Franklin County Courthouse in Rocky Mount, seen in the background. Her effort to create a monument to Black Union troops from the county who fought in the Civil War culminates Sunday in an unveiling.
"The Spirit of Freedom" monument outside the African American Civil War Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., is the nation's most prominent monument honoring the United States Colored Troops.
7 p.m.:Â A lecture on Samuel Smothers, one of the 70 Franklin County men who served in the United States Colored Troops, will be held at First Baptist Church, 45 Patterson Ave., Rocky Mount.
Sunday, Jan. 18
3 p.m.: The unveiling of the monument honoring 70 Franklin County men who served in the United States Colored Troops will be held at the historic First Baptist Church, 135 Angle St., Rocky Mount.
Following the unveiling: AÂ reception will be held at the Harvester Performance Center.
Raising the Shade members (from left) Joe Menefee and Glenna Moore, with First Baptist Church Pastor Chris Coates, Patrick Lindsey and Larry Moore, broke ground in September for the foundation that will hold a monument honoring 70 Franklin County men who served in the United States Colored Troops during the Civil War.
Sculptors Paul DiPasquale, second from right, and Rick Weaver, left, spoke with members of the Raising the Shade monument committee during a visit to the historic First Baptist Church in Rocky Mount in 2024.
Glenna Moore spoke out in 2023 in favor of an unsuccessful effort to remove the Confederate memorial at the Franklin County Courthouse in Rocky Mount, seen in the background. Her effort to create a monument to Black Union troops from the county who fought in the Civil War culminates Sunday in an unveiling.
"The Spirit of Freedom" monument outside the African American Civil War Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., is the nation's most prominent monument honoring the United States Colored Troops.
