Ceremony will commemorate Battle of Whitehall
By Bonnie Edwards
Published in News on December 4, 2005 2:07 AM
SEVEN SPRINGS -- A memorial service commemorating the 143rd anniversary of the Battle of Whitehall will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Whitfield Cemetery on River Street in Seven Springs.
The Seven Springs Historical Society has renamed the cemetery Whitehall Landing. The area has been decorated with lanterns bearing the names of Confederate soldiers killed in the battle, fought as Union forces made their way toward Goldsboro in 1862.
During the service, organizers plan to dedicate a monument to the men who fell in battle.
One side of the monument is dedicated to the soldiers killed in the battle, and the other side is dedicated to all U.S. prisoners of war.
The monument was donated by the Greenville chapter of the Vietnam Veterans of America.
Kendal Smith of the 27th North Carolina Infantry re-enactment group will describe the battle that occurred nearby at the river bridge. Bobby Mozingo will speak on behalf of the Vietnam Veterans of America. Music will be provided by singer Wendy Boyette, wife of Dan Boyette, the Commander of the Goldsboro Rifles reenactment group. Other re-enactment group are expected to attend the ceremony.
Historians say the town was burned to the ground during the Battle of Whitehall, which occurred Dec. 16, 1862.
Both sides claimed victory.
Some say the Union lost 126 men, and the Confederacy lost seven. Others say the Union had 1,200 casualties, and the Confederates had about 100. Historians say the Union soliders had 30 cannons, and the Confederate soldiers had two.