Construction Currently Under Way to Relocate UM Confederate Statue

By Anna Grace Usery
Editor-in-Chief
anna.grace.usery@hottytoddy.com

Construction related to the relocation of the Confederate statue located in the Circle on the University of Mississippi’s campus is currently underway. Sources familiar with the project say this will likely go on for weeks. 

Trucks loaded with construction equipment file into the Circle on the University of Mississippi campus. Photo by Anna Grace Usery.

Security guards, orange construction barriers and metal poles now line both the Confederate cemetery—located near the Tad Smith Coliseum—and the Circle where the statue currently stands.

Construction began Monday, June 22 at the cemetery where crews built fencing to enclose the workspace in the area between Tad Smith Coliseum and the cemetery on campus. This work will lead to portions of Coliseum Loop being closed to vehicles for the duration of the project, the university announced.

Preparation work began Tuesday, June 23 at the site of the Confederate monument. The monument is 29 feet tall and weighs 40,000 pounds.

Construction crews begin work on the area surrounding the Confederate statue. Photo by Anna Grace Usery.

“Crews are starting to build fencing to enclose the workspace in the area around the monument in the Circle. Parking is closed to the public on University Avenue and the Circle for the duration of the project. Reserved parking and handicap parking will be accessible through Galtney Lott Plaza,” according to a release by the university.

The combined cost for relocating the monument, completing the enhancements to the cemetery and creating a memorial to the black soldiers in the Civil War is estimated to cost between $900,000 and $1.2 million. All costs related to moving the monument and all related work will be covered with private funds.

Follow Hottytoddy.com for updates on the statue’s relocation.