Heroes

Hero statue in Milwaukee's Lake Park
dwm photo

Brigadier General Erastus B. Walcott was a big deal.

He served as Surgeon General of Wisconsin during the Civil War and 13 years afterwards.

I never heard of him.  But, then again, the actual war between the states was just a bit before my time.

Intrigued by the beautiful statue in a Milwaukee Park, I read the inscription:

He lived a blameless life; eminent in his profession; a lover of humanity; delighted to serve his fellowmen, his state, and his nation.

Brig. Gen. Wolcott statue
dwm photo

Wow!  A blameless life?  I'm sure he was quite a guy and wonderful human being, but blameless?  I doubt it.

Yet, here he stands... long after the Civil War and decades removed since any average Wisconsin resident could even recognize his name.

It's a monument to short memories and forgotten heroes.

Erastus Wolcott saved lives and was likely admired by many Wisconsin fighting men.  Yet his page in history is pretty dusty.

So it goes, a time for everything under heaven.

The people and the events we find to be so incredibly important will be mere dust in the wind in a few short years.

Curious about this forgotten hero?  Learn more here.