A Brief Guide to Florida’s Monuments and Memorials
By Roberta Sandler
(April 2009 Civil War News)

Illustrated, bibliography, index, softcover, 261 pp., 2008. University Press of Florida, 15 NW 15th St., Gainesville, FL 32611, $21.95 plus shipping.

Reviewer: Paul Taylor
Paul Taylor is the author/editor of four books on the Civil War. His forthcoming biography of Union officer and engineer Orlando M. Poe will be published by Kent State University Press. Visit www.paulrtaylor

Review:
Award-winning travel writer Roberta Sandler has assembled a hefty guidebook of 82 historical monuments and memorials that dot the contemporary Florida landscape. From obelisks and columns to stone boulders, statues and even churches, they commemorate the five centuries of history that have formed the Sunshine State.

Of the included memorials, only a dozen or so have any connection to the Civil War. While some are well-known, such as the monuments at the Olustee and Natural Bridge battlefields, others are quite obscure. For example, there’s the “Sgt. Clayton” memorial in Fort Myers, which honors soldiers from the 2nd USCT and the small monument to Confederate Maj. Gen. Evander M. Law in Bartow.

However, this paperback book is more than a mere travel guide. While Sandler gives the expected addresses and affiliated phone numbers for each memorial, it is quickly apparent that she put considerable research into the history and background of each monument. As an example, the author explains that were it not for General Law, the University of Florida as we know it today might not have existed.

An ample bibliography at the back of the book attests to her research. In addition, photographs of every site adorn this book. There might not be a whole lot in here for the Civil War traveler, nevertheless this guide will serve as a handy map for those history seekers longing to find a bit of old Florida hidden beneath the urban sprawl of the past 30 years.