"NEW" SALUTE HAS OLD HISTORY:
HERITAGE ACTIVIST WROTE FLAG HONORFriday, January 11, 2002
By PAMELA STALLSMITH (pstallsmith@timesdispatch.com)
Times-Dispatch Staff WriterThe House of Delegates began its session yesterday by reciting the Salute to the Flag of Virginia, words penned more than a half-century ago by a Virginia member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
The 30-word salute also is used to open meetings of the Virginia Division of the UDC, whether at one of the 85 chapters across the state or the annual convention.
News of the House decision Wednesday to recite the salute daily, in addition to the Pledge of Allegiance, came as a pleasant surprise to UDC officials.
"I just think this is great," said Sam Lougheed of Stafford County, President of the Virginia Division of the UDC. "The salute to the Virginia flag is very heart-felt."
According to the UDC, the salute was written by Cassie Gravely of Martinsville, who was a charter member of the group's Mildred Lee Chapter.
Gravely served as her chapter's historian for 31 years and was recognized as an authority on the history of Martinsville and Henry County. She died in 1967, at age 93.
UDC records indicated that her salute has been recited at its meetings since 1946, Lougheed said. The General Assembly unanimously endorsed it as "the official salute to the flag of Virginia" in 1954.
Del. William F. Carter of Martinsville, Gravely's local lawmaker who served only one term, successfully guided the bill through the assembly. Gov. Thomas B. Stanley, of neighboring Henry, signed it on March 15, 1954, according to state UDC records.
Members of the Virginia division also recite the pledge and a salute to the Confederate flag at their meetings.
Before it conducts the people's business, the 100-member House chamber now listens to a daily prayer, recites the pledge and the salute, and then welcomes guests. For the first time in recent memory, the House is reciting the two tributes.
Del. Robert F. McDonnell, R-Virginia Beach, who proposed adding the expressions of patriotism to the daily schedule, said he did not know the salute's origins until informed by The Times-Dispatch. His suggestion came in light of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. No such proposal came forward in the state Senate.
McDonnell said the salute's words speak for themselves. In a state where racial tensions still erupt over homage to Virginia's [War Between the States] past, he said he hopes the fact that the salute was written by a member of a group that celebrates its Confederate heritage will not detract from the sentiment.
He pointed to how House members cheered after saying the pledge and salute yesterday.
"The words are good," he said. "I don't think we should malign that great salute based on any links to the Confederacy, and I hope people will understand this."
House Majority Leader H. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem, said he had heard the salute before and knew it came from either the UDC or the Daughters of the American Revolution. Griffith suggested to McDonnell that he add the salute to the proposal to say the pledge, and it cleared on a voice vote without dissent Wednesday.
Griffith said he, too, hopes its history will not cause controversy.
"We looked at the language," Griffith said. "The words are what are important, and it looks to me like this nice lady did very well.... It's all accurate and warm and loving."
Return to Salute to the Virginia Flag Hits a Snag in the General Assembly