Anna Barber speaks to the Linden City Council in support of its community activities and cooperation with the Linden Heritage Foundation. She’s standing near the artist’s conception of a city park memorial being considered.
Linden Heritage Foundation President Sam Higdon is passing out an artist’s rendition of what could be a memorial expansion at the city park. Higdon spent some time speaking to the city council recently to explain his ideas.
Franklin Hamilton and a visiting financial professional take a look at a color sketch for a proposed memorial expansion park project being worked on by the Linden Heritage Foundation.Foundation President Sam Higdon is in the background
Linden Heritage Foundation President Sam Higdon, standing right, is taking a moment of the Linden City Council’s time to explain ideas for a possible memorial at city park.Visible at the table are council members, from left, Chuck Evans, Mary Dowd,Lynn
Memorial to be built in Heritage Park
Linden’s goal of building a memorial for its city park to recognize the town’s history of using slave labor to build the oldest continually operating state courthouse received a boost and a caution recently.
The Linden Heritage Foundation led by President Sam Higdon presented the council with an artist’s drawing of three historically representative buildings which could be the memorial.
One site would be the kiln area where the bricks for the courthouse were fired. Another would be a public pavilion where gatherings such as classes could be held. And the third could be a train depot or warehouse building to represent the town’s railroad story.
Only the first site of kiln and memorial plaques telling of the history had been proposed and approved earlier. Higdon’s vision — and that of the heritage foundation’s — enlarged the memorial idea significantly.
Some hesitant opinions were expressed by council members such as for upkeep, costs and actual usage.
In the end, the council voted to accept the foundation’s idea for the first or kiln model site of the memorial but to require later approval for additions of buildings, appearances, purposes and costs. These later suggestions would be brought before the council on a case by case basis for approval.
The council did express in highly complimentary terms their respect and approval for all the hard work of the foundation — and of Higdon especially — in bringing excitement and vision to the project.
“I think the results were positive in both ways,” City Manager Lee Elliott said afterwards of the meeting. “The vision of doing something we all can be proud of is the most important part. The city and the heritage foundation will work closely together to make this project truly successful.”