Battle of Liberty Place
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Liberty Place was an attempted insurrection by the Crescent City White League
against the legal Reconstruction state government on September 14, 1874 in New Orleans, Louisiana
, where it was then based.
The Democratic
paramilitary
White League
, made up of Confederate
veterans, fought and won against the racially integrated
Metropolitan Police and state militia. They held the state house, armory and downtown for three days until federal troops arrived to restore the elected government. The White League retreated and no men were charged in the action. This was the last major event of violence stemming from the disputed 1872 gubernatorial election, in which both the Democrat John McEnery and Republican William Pitt Kellogg claimed victory.
Among those injured in the fighting at Liberty Place was the carpetbagger
official Algernon Sidney Badger
.
An 1891 obelisk monument commemorating the battle from the White League view continues to generate controversy.
Republicans, including Republican Gov. Henry C. Warmoth. Warmoth's opponents in the Republican Party remained loyal to President Grant, and supported the Republican Party nominee William Pitt Kellogg. Governor Warmoth had appointed the State Returning Board, which administered elections, and declared McEnery the winner. A rival board endorsed Kellogg, who had charged election fraud because of the violence and intimidation that took place at and near the polls. The legislature impeached Warmoth from office and removed him for "stealing" the election. The Lieutenant Governor P. B. S. Pinchback
, became Governor for the last 35 days of Warmoth's term. Both McEnery and Kellogg had inaugural parties and certified lists of local officeholders.
In 1874 McEnery and his allies formed a "rump
" legislature in New Orleans, then the location of state government. The White League entered the city with 5,000 paramilitary forces; they fought against 3500 police and state militia. The White League defeated the state militia, with about 100 casualties. The insurgents went on to occupy the state house and armory, and turn the Republican governor, Kellogg, out of office. When former Confederate general James Longstreet
tried to stop the fighting, he was pulled from his horse, shot by a spent bullet, and taken prisoner. Within three days, Federal troops entered the city, responding to Kellogg's appeal to President Grant. The White League insurgents retreated from New Orleans. (More people had been killed the year before in the Colfax Massacre
, when a white militia attacked freedmen defending Republican officeholders at the courthouse. This action was also related to the election dispute and political tensions between Democratic whites and Republican blacks. In Colfax, three whites and 80-150 blacks were killed, at least 50 after having been taken prisoner.)
.
In 1932 inscriptions were added to the monument which attested to its role in the white supremacist movement.
In the late 20th century, the monument came to be seen as more and more objectionable, as a symbol of racism, objected to especially in the black and Italian communities. (White League veterans led a mob that lynched eleven Sicilian men in 1891.) In 1974 an additional plaque was added on the neutral ground at the foot of the monument acknowledging the history of the monument while officially distancing the City of New Orleans with the racist views of previous generations still expressed through the older inscriptions.http://photos.nola.com/tpphotos/2011/09/175crow_17.html
In 1989 the monument was removed during major street work on Canal Street. Many residents opposed its being restored and replaced. The city tried to negotiate removing the inscriptions. Some people argued for its being restored at the original location. The content of the inscriptions was seldom discussed; rather, the issues were dealt with on technical grounds. Historic preservation officials argued for its replacement; others argued this was history which did not deserve continued commemoration.
The monument was eventually re-erected at a less prominent location, a short distance off Canal Street, between the One Canal Place
parking garage and a floodwall.
White nationalist David Duke
has cited the monument as a symbol of "white pride", and in 2004 attempted to stage a rally by the monument. The monument has been the frequent target of vandalism, most frequently anti-racist and anti-nazi graffiti. Multiple attempts to pull the monument down were unsuccessful, but did result in the destruction of the 4 stone pillars formerly at the corners in the center of the monument below the obelisk portion.
See also:
Brooks-Baxter War
White League
The White League was a white paramilitary group started in 1874 that operated to turn Republicans out of office and intimidate freedmen from voting and political organizing. Its first chapter in Grant Parish, Louisiana was made up of many of the Confederate veterans who had participated in the...
against the legal Reconstruction state government on September 14, 1874 in New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, where it was then based.
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
White League
White League
The White League was a white paramilitary group started in 1874 that operated to turn Republicans out of office and intimidate freedmen from voting and political organizing. Its first chapter in Grant Parish, Louisiana was made up of many of the Confederate veterans who had participated in the...
, made up of Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
veterans, fought and won against the racially integrated
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...
Metropolitan Police and state militia. They held the state house, armory and downtown for three days until federal troops arrived to restore the elected government. The White League retreated and no men were charged in the action. This was the last major event of violence stemming from the disputed 1872 gubernatorial election, in which both the Democrat John McEnery and Republican William Pitt Kellogg claimed victory.
Among those injured in the fighting at Liberty Place was the carpetbagger
Carpetbagger
Carpetbaggers was a pejorative term Southerners gave to Northerners who moved to the South during the Reconstruction era, between 1865 and 1877....
official Algernon Sidney Badger
Algernon Sidney Badger
Algernon Sidney Badger was a colonel in the Union Army who became an important Republican carpetbagger government official in New Orleans, Louisiana, during and after Reconstruction.- Early years :...
.
An 1891 obelisk monument commemorating the battle from the White League view continues to generate controversy.
History
The "Battle of Liberty Place" was the name given to the insurrection by its white Democratic supporters, as part of their story of a struggle to overturn the Reconstruction government. They viewed the government as corrupt and illegal. In the election of 1872, McEnery, a Democrat, was supported by a coalition of Democrats and anti-GrantUlysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
Republicans, including Republican Gov. Henry C. Warmoth. Warmoth's opponents in the Republican Party remained loyal to President Grant, and supported the Republican Party nominee William Pitt Kellogg. Governor Warmoth had appointed the State Returning Board, which administered elections, and declared McEnery the winner. A rival board endorsed Kellogg, who had charged election fraud because of the violence and intimidation that took place at and near the polls. The legislature impeached Warmoth from office and removed him for "stealing" the election. The Lieutenant Governor P. B. S. Pinchback
P. B. S. Pinchback
Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback was the first non-white and first person of African American descent to become governor of a U.S. state...
, became Governor for the last 35 days of Warmoth's term. Both McEnery and Kellogg had inaugural parties and certified lists of local officeholders.
In 1874 McEnery and his allies formed a "rump
Rump legislature
A Rump legislature is a legislature formed of part, usually a minority, of the legislators originally elected or appointed to office.The word "rump" normally refers to the back end of an animal; its use meaning "remnant" was first recorded in the context of the 17th century Rump Parliament in England...
" legislature in New Orleans, then the location of state government. The White League entered the city with 5,000 paramilitary forces; they fought against 3500 police and state militia. The White League defeated the state militia, with about 100 casualties. The insurgents went on to occupy the state house and armory, and turn the Republican governor, Kellogg, out of office. When former Confederate general James Longstreet
James Longstreet
James Longstreet was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse." He served under Lee as a corps commander for many of the famous battles fought by the Army of Northern Virginia in the...
tried to stop the fighting, he was pulled from his horse, shot by a spent bullet, and taken prisoner. Within three days, Federal troops entered the city, responding to Kellogg's appeal to President Grant. The White League insurgents retreated from New Orleans. (More people had been killed the year before in the Colfax Massacre
Colfax massacre
The Colfax massacre or Colfax Riot occurred on Easter Sunday, April 13, 1873, in Colfax, Louisiana, the seat of Grant Parish, during Reconstruction, when white militia attacked freedmen at the Colfax courthouse...
, when a white militia attacked freedmen defending Republican officeholders at the courthouse. This action was also related to the election dispute and political tensions between Democratic whites and Republican blacks. In Colfax, three whites and 80-150 blacks were killed, at least 50 after having been taken prisoner.)
Battle of Liberty Place monument
In 1891, a year after the Democratic legislature passed a new constitution that essentially disfranchised most blacks, the city government, by then representing only its white constituents, erected the Liberty Monument to "commemorate the uprising." The monument was prominently placed in the neutral ground (median) near the foot of Canal StreetCanal Street, New Orleans
Canal Street is a major thoroughfare in the city of New Orleans. Forming the upriver boundary of the city's oldest neighborhood, the French Quarter , it acted as the dividing line between the older French/Spanish Colonial-era city and the newer American Sector, today's Central Business District.The...
.
In 1932 inscriptions were added to the monument which attested to its role in the white supremacist movement.
In the late 20th century, the monument came to be seen as more and more objectionable, as a symbol of racism, objected to especially in the black and Italian communities. (White League veterans led a mob that lynched eleven Sicilian men in 1891.) In 1974 an additional plaque was added on the neutral ground at the foot of the monument acknowledging the history of the monument while officially distancing the City of New Orleans with the racist views of previous generations still expressed through the older inscriptions.http://photos.nola.com/tpphotos/2011/09/175crow_17.html
In 1989 the monument was removed during major street work on Canal Street. Many residents opposed its being restored and replaced. The city tried to negotiate removing the inscriptions. Some people argued for its being restored at the original location. The content of the inscriptions was seldom discussed; rather, the issues were dealt with on technical grounds. Historic preservation officials argued for its replacement; others argued this was history which did not deserve continued commemoration.
The monument was eventually re-erected at a less prominent location, a short distance off Canal Street, between the One Canal Place
One Canal Place
One Canal Place, located at 365 Canal Street in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, is a 32-story, -tall skyscraper. The building contains The Shops at Canal Place shopping mall and is attached to The Westin New Orleans Canal Place, with which it shares a parking garage...
parking garage and a floodwall.
White nationalist David Duke
David Duke
David Ernest Duke is a former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan an American activist and writer, and former Republican Louisiana State Representative. He was also a former candidate in the Republican presidential primaries in 1992, and in the Democratic presidential primaries in...
has cited the monument as a symbol of "white pride", and in 2004 attempted to stage a rally by the monument. The monument has been the frequent target of vandalism, most frequently anti-racist and anti-nazi graffiti. Multiple attempts to pull the monument down were unsuccessful, but did result in the destruction of the 4 stone pillars formerly at the corners in the center of the monument below the obelisk portion.
See also:
Brooks-Baxter War
Brooks-Baxter War
The Brooks–Baxter War was an armed conflict in Little Rock, Arkansas, in the United States, in 1874 between factions of the Republican Party over the disputed 1872 election for governor...
External links
- The battle of Liberty Monument - New Orleans, Louisiana white supremacist statue by Adolph Reed, Jr., The Progressive, June 1993
- Battle of Liberty Place Monument Historic Marker Database
- New Orleans Indymedia account of 2004 vandalism to monument