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Robert E. Lee Memorial (Roanoke, Virginia)

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Robert E. Lee Memorial
LocationRoanoke, Virginia
TypeMemorial
Height10 feet
Opening dateOctober 1960
Dedicated toRobert E. Lee

The Robert E. Lee Memorial is a monument commemorating Robert E. Lee, formerly installed in Roanoke, Virginia's Lee Plaza, in the United States. The stone memorial was approximately 10 feet (3.0 m) tall, and was erected by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in the fall of 1960, just as the first two Black students were enrolled in the all-white school system. The monument's erection coincided with the run up to the centennial of the Civil War in 1961.

In June 2020, the Roanoke City Council voted to start the legal process to remove the monument and rename Lee Plaza after the July 1, 2020 date when a new state law removes the prohibition against removing monuments to the Confederate States of America.[1]

On just before midnight July 22, 2020, the monument was found to be torn down and broken into two pieces.[2] A 70-year-old man named William Foreman, who was caught vandalizing the monument the night before it was torn down, was arrested on July 24, 2020, and agreed to cooperate with investigators.[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ Berrier Jr, Ralph (June 5, 2020). "Council majority supports removing Roanoke's memorial to Robert E. Lee, renaming plaza". Roanoke Times. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
  2. ^ "City leaders react to damage to Roanoke Robert e. Lee Memorial; police say it appears intentional".
  3. ^ "Man arrested for damage to Roanoke Robert e. Lee monument".

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