As America prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, a new memorial honoring Revolutionary War veterans with ties to the Peoria area is taking its place in the historic Springdale Cemetery.
Patriot Plaza, a landmark developed in collaboration with the local chapters of Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution [SAR], will have a public dedication at 5:30 p.m. Sunday as part of a Flag Day celebration.
The plaza will be the new site for a historical marker honoring Captain Zeally Moss, the namesake of Moss Avenue and the father of Bradley University founder Lydia Moss Bradley.
“In 2014, the SAR dedicated a historical plaque for Moss. But after more than a decade, the concrete platform had begun cracking and failing, and falling tree branches overhead threatened further damage to the monument. So the marker was taken down for safekeeping,” said Springdale Cemetery general manager Aaron Comte during a presentation at Tuesday’s Peoria City Council meeting.
The relocated Moss marker will be joined by two new permanent plaques honoring a pair of privates who also fought in the Revolutionary War, Levin Powell and William Crow.
“These men witnessed the birth of our nation, and yet most of us have never heard their names before,” said Comte. “All three were Virginians who eventually moved their way out west after the war to settle on the new frontier, where many of their descendants still live amongst us today, and they all have family ties at Springdale.”
The new concrete plaza also features a 20-foot flagpole that will fly a 13-star Betsy Ross American flag throughout the year, as well as a Liberty Tree planted as part of the SAR’s national initiative to plant 250 trees for this year's America 250 celebration.
Comte said while the plaza is set for this weekend’s unveiling, the full vision is not yet complete. They’re hoping to raise additional funding to make further upgrades and accessibility improvements at the site.
Council member Tim Riggenbach said the Patriot Plaza will be a welcome addition to the historic cemetery that he believes is an underappreciated community asset.
“This is such a living museum that we take for granted,” said Riggenbach. “There’s a Juneteenth walking tour that you can take that will highlight some of the significant leaders in Peoria that are buried there, and it just goes on and on as to what’s happening there.”
