John May Hamilton...

Disclaimer: This post discusses, and includes pictures of human remains...If your grossed out...deal with it.

There is a girl in our reenactment group who's Great Great Grandfather was killed during the Civil War. He was captured, and refused to renounce the Confederacy, and was killed for his allegiance. This man was a true American hero, he died for something he held very dear to him...his country, and his freedom. He was not willing to give those things up, and this hero choose to bravely face death, and hold fast to his beliefs. It's because of men like this, that we have the freedom we do today.

His family searched for many years for his remains. It was only a few years ago, that he was discovered in Bloomfield, KY, about an hour or so from Lexington. His family enlisted the help of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and the 5th KY to recover his remains, and bring them home to the family cemetery. There were so many people willing to devote an entire weekend in the hot sun digging a grave, and searching for the remains. It was moving to share an experience like this with a group of people, all focused on one purpose...bringing John May Hamilton home. Allow me to pause, and say, "Yes, I Kristen Porter, helped dig up a dead body in a cemetery." And I have pictures to prove it. Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm not a fan of cemeteries, but this story touched me on such a deep level, and I was honored to be apart of it. We were able to recover quite a few bones, and had a memorial service for him the next day. I can't imagine the closure the family was able to experience after searching for someone for 145 years. I have been apart of a few dedications of headstones for Confederate veterans, and each has been special in it's own way. But, actually having a Confederate soldier's remains present at the dedication was spine tingling. Especially the remains from someone so heroic, and brave. How often does a person have the opportunity to bury a Civil War soldier? NEVER. It was an event that I truly will never forget.