The man behind the memorials
When the Civil War monument at Montevallo is dedicated April 14 by the Vernon County Historical Society, it will be the 27th memorial marker that Eldon Steward has placed for fallen soldiers of that conflict, three for his own family.
Civil War buff Steward spearheaded the Society's plan to memorialize soldiers who fought in the Battle of Montevallo, the Battle of Horse Creek and the Battle of the Church in the Woods. All of these aren't far from where Steward was born 80 years ago on a farm three and one-half miles east in Cedar County and fairly near his present farm on the Vernon-Cedar County line.
Steward is a long-time supporter of the historical society and was acquainted with the late Pat Brophy and his interest in the Civil War. As a benefactor and promoter of Vernon County history, he has given many artifacts to the Bushwhacker Museum gleaned from the land where old Montevallo stood.
"I've been over every inch of that land and found only one bullet with my metal detector. Farmers who could spot items in the plowed ground have turned up the most important objects," he said.
For instance, from his aunt's family came a bullet ball and a cannon ball. Among other gifts are the grindstone which sits at the Bushwhacker jail yard, and a gravestone initialed JM, believed to be for Joseph Martin, a shopkeeper in old Montevallo, a town he said was once twice as big as Nevada, Many artifacts he bought from Otis Garber, whose ancestor Demas Garber owned Montevallo land in 1871. Steward also acquired and gave to the museum a black U.S. mail hack that once belonged to Wayne McCollum, a Montevallo resident who lived across from the old stone schoolhouse, which still stands.
The school's been vacant since 1957. Steward said he tried to get the historical society to take it to no avail, he said. "Only pigeons live there now."
Steward, who served four years in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War, began working as a museum volunteer with Charles Foreman, Stafford Agee and Jerry Bartlett about 1998, and now is a member of the board of directors. A retired salesman for the Pioneer Seed Co., he and his wife Carolyn have traveled much of the world, every U.S. state, and all the major Civil War battlefields.
A memorable trip to Scotland gave them opportunities to visit castles of Mary, Queen of Scots, who was a Steward, and the birthplace of King James of England.
"It was family genealogy that led me to get interested in the Civil War," said Steward, who counts five ancestors who fought in the conflict. He is a member of two Sons of the Confederacy chapters, the McBride Camp and Roundtable near Springfield, and the Coffee Camp.
Steward has placed Confederate markers for three family members-- grandfather on his grandmother's side, Jasper Newton Robinson; a brother-in-law Hiram Ready, and Bill Steward who rode with Bushwhacker Tom Livingston.
"We've had names like Sterling Price and Jefferson Davis in our family," Steward said, referring to Southern leaders. "I enjoy seeing that our men who died in the war are remembered, and the Montevallo memorial is especially important to this area."
The dedication at Montevallo is scheduled for 11 a.m., Saturday, and will feature Civil War re-enactors. Refreshments will be served and the event is open to the public.