Civil War cannons ready to stand guard again in Middletown

The more than 400 veterans from the Civil War to World War I buried at Woodside Cemetery and the Soldiers & Sailors Monument Memorial will be protected for at least 200 more years.

Back in the late 1800s, Paul S. Sorg, a Middletown industrialist, wanted three Civil War era cannons to be placed at the tips of the triangular memorial to stand guard. The 10,000-pound cannons were supported by concrete bases, but recently the supports started to “deteriorate dramatically,” said Fred Wehr, manager of Woodside Cemetery and Arboretum. He contacted the Butler County Commission to see if it could fund the purchase of 12,000-pound polished granite supports for the cannons.

Maintaining the veterans memorials throughout the county are the responsibility of the commissioners, said Butler County Commissioner Cindy Carpenter. The commission approved spending more than $46,000 to build the three supports, and the money came from the general fund, Carpenter said. As part of the Veterans Day ceremony Wednesday morning at Woodside, the cannons were re-dedicated, 113 years after they were dedicated.

Wehr said he was concerned that if the supports weren’t replaced, there was a possibility the cannons might sink in the ground because of the condition of the concrete. He said when the cannons were removed, some of the supports just crumbled.

In 1895, Sorg challenged the community to raise the funds and local farmers were asked to haul their finest boulders to the site on wagons. Sorg promised that if the citizens would do their part, he would donate a bronze figure to adorn the top of the 100-foot monument. The Soldiers & Sailors Memorial was commissioned by the noted architect, Frank Mills Andrews and completed in 1902 with the addition of a bronze statue that was donated by Sorg.

The monument cost $7,358, and the bronze statue cost $3,000. Sorg died before the monument was dedicated.

When Wednesday’s ceremony was over, Wehr sat on one of the metal folding chairs and was asked what goes through his mind when he looks at the cannons.

“It gives me goosebumps that we have been able to improve the look and keep them maintained for 200 years in the future,” he said. “It’s imperative that we maintain what we have for the future. We are preserving memories here.”

Carpenter said the three Civil War cannons are unique to the region, and serve as reminders of the sacrifices made by the soldiers.

“We’re happy to be part of the project,” she said. “We try to recognize the veterans. Butler County has an incredible war history.”

And what does Sorg think of the cannons?

“He has to be proud of this one piece of his legacy,” she said.

Wehr added: “He’s up there doing handstands that we are maintaining his section to remember all these people who went before us that preserve our freedoms.”

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