Thanks to Patrick Drouhard, we now have a book which tells the entire story of the Cardington Civil War Soldiers Monument Project.
Did you know—
the monument was first erected at the intersection of Center and Main Street in Cardington in the summer of 1889. It was officially dedicated with great fanfare on July 4 of that same year. It listed the names of 306 men that were from, or at one time lived in Cardington Township or nearby townships and villages. It was made of zinc and was in five parts that were bolted together.
In 1897 the monument was unceremoniously moved to its permanent location in Glendale Union Cemetery and sat undisturbed for over 80 years. On June 13, 1981, a tornado destroyed the village of Cardington and there were indications that the tornado slightly rotated the monument in a clockwise direction on its sandstone base.
Sometime in the 1990’s, it was noted that the monument was beginning to sag on the south side, between the second and third tiers. The soldier at the top began to lean backward to the north.
When brought to the attention of a community group called “The Friends of Cardington”, it was decided that the monument needed to be repaired and preserved. So, a gigantic fundraising program was begun between the Friends of Cardington and the Glendale-Union Cemetery Board. In April 2021, the goal was reached.
On October 21, 2020 McKay Lodge brought in a mini crane and dismantled and removed the monument. Repairs were made and the monument was returned to Cardington on April 21, 2021. It was rededicated on May 31, 2021–Memorial Day.
The above is just a short synopsis of the project. The book includes research pages for each soldier. Please stop by our library for a chance to review the step-by-step process of this great undertaking.