Francis Marion Elam

Honoring Francis Marion Elam

This photograph shows the gravestone of Francis Marion Elam, a soldier of the Confederate States Army, decorated with Confederate battle flags and Texas state flags and a fresh bouquet of red roses. It is the kind of scene you can find in cemeteries all across the South, where descendants and heritage groups gather to honor the men who served.

Like many Southern boys of his generation, Elam was named after Francis Marion, the South Carolina hero of the American Revolution. Marion was known as the “Swamp Fox” for his daring hit-and-run raids against the British, and countless Southern families named their sons after him.

Marking the Graves of Our Veterans

Many Confederate soldiers were buried with simple wooden markers that rotted away long ago. Today, descendants and groups such as the Sons of Confederate Veterans work to research service records and place proper headstones on these graves. Dedication ceremonies often include a color guard, period uniforms, prayers, the reading of the soldier’s service record and a rifle or cannon salute.

Every one of these ceremonies is a way of saying that the man buried there mattered, and that his family has not forgotten him.

If you have a Confederate ancestor, consider researching his story and visiting his grave. Honor him with a flag from our Confederate flag collection or our Texas flags.

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