CityView Magazine

42 December 2022 FAYETTEVILLE HISTORY Fort Liberty A name to remember BY WEEKS PARKER We hope you enjoy this recurring feature by history buff Weeks Parker, who owns an impressive collection of local memorabilia and photos that he has agreed to share with CityView readers. A former Presbyterian Ju- nior College band director, Parker is the author of 12 books on a variety of subjects, including "Fayetteville, North Carolina: A Pictorial History." B ecause we are now required by federal law to change the 104-year-old name of Fort Bragg, I can think of no better name to give it than Fort Liberty. is is a neutral name that could not possibly be offensive to anyone since it does not honor anyone from the North, South, East or West. Liberty Point Resolves In 1775, a declaration of independence known as the Liberty Point Resolves was signed at what was later called Liberty Point on the corner of Person and Bow streets in Fayetteville. ere is now a granite monument on that site that bears the names of the signers. My Great-Great-Uncle John Parker was one of the signers. In the 1970s, the original Liberty Point Resolves was discovered by David Sanders Clark in the historical collection at the University of North Carolina. e original document revealed that there were a total of 55 signers of the Liberty Point Resolves. ere are 39 names on the front of the granite stone, and the remaining 16 names are engraved on the back. In 1775, a declaration of independence known as the Liberty Point Resolves was signed at what was later called Liberty Point on the corner of Person and Bow streets in Fayetteville. There is now a granite monument on that site that bears the names of the signers. Proposed Statue of Liberty On March 24, 1903, an auxiliary to the Liberty Point monument association was formed to help raise money for a statue at Liberty Point. Beneath the proposed statue of a lady would be the word "Liberty." Although several fundraising techniques were used, including the sale of an artist's conception of the statue, money for the monument could not be raised. e old opera house was depicted in the extreme le of the drawing. Changing the name of Fort Bragg to Fort Liberty will blend in with the great history of Fayetteville. The proposed statue at Liberty Point Renaming Fort Bragg The Naming Commission in May recommended that Fort Bragg be renamed Fort Liberty. The commission was mandated by the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act to identify installations and assets whose names commemorate the Confederacy. While the Naming Commission recommended that Fort Bragg be changed to Fort Liberty, it considered 10 other recommendations, including naming the post for Gens. Colin Powell, Matthew Ridgway or Roscoe Robinson Jr.

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