On August 20, 2009, members of United Daughters of the Confederacy and Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1202 jointly participated in the presentation of the 1st National Flag of the Confederacy during the Flag Ceremony.  The Flag Ceremony was conducted at the El Presidio de San Agustin del Tucson at the city center downtown Tucson.  The event was sponsored by the Tucson Pima County Historical Society.

The Flag Ceremony was a presentation of the flags that flew over Tucson in its 234 year history.  The first flag to be posted was the American Flag, followed by the Tohono O’odham and the Pascua Yaqui flags.  The latter two flags were ceremonial in that they had not actually flown over Tucson.  The next flags to be posted were, in ascending period order, the Flag of Spain, the Flag of Mexico, the 28 star Flag of the United States, the 1st National Flag of the Confederacy, and the Arizona State Flag.  The ceremony concluded after birthday cake and accompanying musical tribute was enjoyed.  In attendance were 75 to 100 people.

On Saturday, May 16, 2009 there was a Historical Relocation of Civil War Soldiers Ceremony in Sierra Vista, AZ.  The remains of 70 soldiers buried between 1862 and 1878 were discovered during a construction project in downtown Tucson, Arizona.  The 14 Union soldiers were California Volunteer Infantry and Cavalry that were part of the famed ‘California Column’ and most are unknown.  The bulk of the recovered soldiers were U.S. Regulars serving in Arizona between 1866 and 1878, with most of them identified.

The remains were moved by escorted military convoy from Tucson to the Southern Arizona Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery in Sierra Vista on Friday, May 15, 2009.  On Saturday, May 16, the soldiers were buried in an elaborate ceremony in a special cemetery set aside exclusively for them.  The service was held at the Southern Arizona Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery, Buffalo Soldier Trail, Sierra Vista, AZ.

Four Confederate Memorial Day ceremonies were held in Arizona.  Confederate Memorial Day gives people a chance to honor and remember the Confederate soldiers who died or were wounded during the American Civil War during the 1860s.  There was a wonderful ceremony held at each location.  Flowers were respectfully placed on the Confederate soldiers’ graves as well.  Below are the dates and locations where the ceremonies were held:

May 2, 2009 at Dragoon Springs, AZ

April 26, 2009 at Evergreen Cemetery, Tucson, AZ

April 25, 2009 at Wesley Bolen Park, Phoenix, AZ

April 25, 2009 at Greenwood Memorial Lawn, Phoenix, AZ

Welcome to the new Arizona Division web site!