A nearly 100 year old monument in the White Hall Cemetery has received a face lift thanks to the work of some dedicated volunteers and private donations over the last 3 years. The 1904 Soldiers & Sailors Monument that sits in the center of the cemetery recently had improvements made with the help of the local American Legion Post #70. The monument has received a new flag pole, new lighting to illuminate the monument at night, new shrubbery, and restoration of the front wall on the mound to the monument. The post has been working on completing the upgrades over the past 3 years.
The monument is 25 feet high and 8 feet long at the base. It was erected at a cost of $2,000 and was dedicated to the memory of the soldiers and sailors of the republic, and offsets rows of white crosses of local servicemen and women who have died overseas in the country’s wars.
The Greene Prairie Press reports that Randy Goben came up with the new design for the shrubs along with purchasing mulch and planting them over the last 3 years. The project was completed over the extended time due to the slow trickle of private donations. American Legion Adjutant Dan Howard told the Greene Prairie Press that the total cost of the renovations was around $11,000 and that no American Legion or White Hall Cemetery funding was used. The flag pole was donated two years ago by the American Legion, which is celebrating its 100th year in White Hall.