Biggest Monument to the Boy Martyr of the Confederacy

Little Rock, Arkansas

In the early 20th century, various Confederate memorial groups erected at least four different stone monuments in and around Little Rock to mark the final days of David O. Dodd, hanged nearby as a spy by Yankees when he was only 17.

This one, the most elaborate of all, stands in a place of honor outside the former Arkansas State House. It features a marble portrait of the youthful Dodd, identifies him as the "Boy Martyr of the Confederacy," and includes an engraved poem that attributes his demise to his love of the South. The monument stood for 70 years and then, far from being forgotten, was made the centerpiece of a new brick plaza when the State House was remodeled in 1996.