In May 2005 a committee was formed to re-dedicate Confederate Memorial Forest at Ducktown, Tennessee. This 103 acre tract had been set aside and dedicated, after much preliminary work by the US Forest Service (USFS) and the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), on 25 June 1942. The Committee to Re-dedicate Confederate Memorial Forest (CRCMF) was comprised of the following: Mrs Sharon Cain, President, Tellico Iron Works chapter 2636, UDC, and Jimbo Richeson, Lieutenant Commander, Private David W. Payne Camp 1633, SCV, Co-Chairs; and, committee members: Mrs Joanne Finnell, President, Jefferson Davis chapter, UDC, Mrs Mary Thomason, President, Benton chapter, UDC, Mrs Namuni Young, Director, Confederate Memorial Hall, Knoxville, and Brett Moffatt, Longstreet-Zollicoffer Camp 87, SCV, Knoxville. The committee worked in close co-operation with Mrs Jo Hill, President, Tennessee Division, UDC. The USFS District Ranger initially was enthusiastic and co-operative. After a few months it became clear that a wall of political correctness had been encountered, making all meaningful progress toward the goal of scheduling the proposed re-dedication come to an impasse.
Despite many good faith attempts on the part of the committee to re-start progress, nothing availed. Concerned about the appearance of possible discrimination, in late 2006 the Southern Legal Resources Center (SLRC), a civil rights advocacy group defending people of Confederate heritage, was contacted for legal advice. SLRC contacted the USFS Ocoee Ranger District. Renewed reciprocal communications between the committee and the USFS ensued almost immediately, culminating in a face to face meeting on site at CMF in Ducktown. The committee graciously received the apologies of the USFS for their apparent foot dragging, and written promises were presented saying that a new CMF marker sign would be installed on site, and dead beetle pines posing a potential risk to visitors to the site would be cut down and removed, and lastly, that the USFS would duly evaluate any specific use application submitted by the committee for using the site on a specific date to re-dedicate the CMF.
The committee, thereupon, chose a date for the event, and promptly submitted the application asking for Saturday, 14 April 2007, to schedule the event. Within a reasonable amount of time the District Ranger’s office responded by permitting the event to be held as suggested by the committee. This was almost two full years after the committee had first met in person with the USFS District Ranger to work out the proposal to re-dedicate the CMF. Inclement weather on the day of the event induced the committee to fall back to an alternate plan to hold the event indoors at the Ducktown Court House, some three miles east of the CMF, with volunteers re-directing attendees to the Court House stationed on site at CMF. The committee desires to record that the Polk County officials with whom they worked to procure the indoor facilities were most gracious, encouraging, and helpful in every way. Their unselfish assistance was most encouraging after the disappointments of the preceding two years.
Speakers not mentioned in the newspaper article were: Mrs Jo Hill, State President, Tennessee Division, UDC, Mrs Joanne Finnell, Chapter President, UDC, Mrs Sharon Cain, Chapter President, UDC, Dr Michael R. Bradley, Division Commander, Tennessee Division, SCV, and Edward McNatt Butler, Army of Tennessee Councilman, SCV,and Major Jeff Smith, Cmdg, 43d Regt, CSA . Now, three full years after the re-dedication it must be noted that the USFS has not yet fulfilled their promise to erect a new marker sign on site, nor have they cut down and removed the dangerous beetle pines posing a risk to visitors at the site.