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This month, to commemorate Memorial day, we
are dedicating the Newsletter to our Ancestors who served in the Civil
War. Probably among the most famous of our Civil War Ancestors you will
find Rosatta Maria O'Neale, better known to the world as "REBEL ROSE."
Below is a copy of her obituary dated October 1, 1864.
The Funeral of Mrs. Rose Greenhow -- The death by drowning
of Mrs. Rose Greenhow, near Wilmington, North Carolina, last week, has
been already noticed. She leaves one child, an interesting little daughter,
who is in a convent school at Paris, where her mother left her upon her
return to this country. Hundreds of ladies lined the wharf at Wilmington
upon the approach of the steamer bearing Mrs. Greenhow's remains. The Soldiers'
Aid Society took charge of the funeral which took place from the chapel
of Hospital No. 4. A letter to the Sentinel, describing it, says:
"It was a solemn and imposing spectacle. The profusion
of wax lights round the corpse, the quality of choice flowers, in crosses,
garlands, and bouquets, scattered over it, the silent mourners, sable-robed
at the head and foot; the tide of visitors, women and children, with streaming
eyes, and soldiers, with bent heads and hushed steps, standing by, paying
the last tribute of respect to the departed heroine. On the bier, draped
with a magnificent Confederate flag, lay the body , so unchanged as to
look like a calm sleeper, while above all rose the tall ebony crucifix
-- emblem of the faith she embraced in happier hours, and which we humbly
trust, was her consolation in passing through the dark waters of the river
of death. She lay there until two o'clock of Sunday afternoon, when the
body was removed to the Catholic Church of St. Thomas. Here the funeral
oration was delivered by the Rev. Dr. Corcoran, which was a touching tribute
to the heroism and patriotic devotion of the deceased, as well as a solemn
warning, on the uncertainty of all human projects and ambition, even though
of the most laudable character.
"The coffin, which was as richly decorated as the resources
of the town admitted, and still covered with the Confederate flag, was
borne to the Oakdale Cemetery, followed by an immense funeral cortege.
A beautiful spot on a grassy slope, overshadowed by wavering trees and
in sight of a tranquil lake, was chosen for her resting place. Rain fell
in torrents during the day; but as the coffin was being lowered into the
grave, the sun burst forth in the brightest majesty, and a rainbow of the
most vivid color spanned the horizon. Let us accept the omen, not only
for her, the quiet sleeper, who, after many storms and a tumultuous and
checkered life, came to peace and rest at last, but also for our beloved
country, over which we trust the rainbow of hope will ere long shine with
brightest dyes.
"The pall bearers were Colonel Tansill, chief of staff
to General Whiting; Major Vanderhorst, J.M. Seixas, Esq., Dr. de Prossett,
Dr. Micks and Dr. Medway. General Whiting and Captain C. B. Poindexter,
representing the two services, were prevented from acting as pallbearers,
the former by reason of absence, the latter in consequence of illness."
If you would like to visit Rose, you will have to travel to
Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington where she was buried in October, 1864.
When she was buried, her coffin was wrapped in a Confederate flag and Confederate
troops carried her to her final resting place. The marble cross that marks
her grave bears the epitaph "Mrs. Rose Greenhow, a bearer of dispatches
to the Confederate Government."
