Mayor removes Confederate marker from St. Pete's waterfront

The mayor of one Florida city has ordered the removal of a stone marker erected in 1939 to commemorate a Confederate general.

The Tampa Bay Times reports St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman decided to remove it after he consulted with the city's police chief, who suggested removing it quietly without alerting the public or the media in the interests of public safety.

The marker - a bronze plaque mounted to a large stone near the city's waterfront- is being stored until the city can find the owner. Kirby said the city has reached out to the United Daughters of the Confederacy.

St. Petersburg's marker doesn't praise the Confederate general who was mortally wounded by his own troops at the battle of Chancellorsville in 1863. It notes the spot where the memorial highway ended.

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Information from: Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.), http://www.tampabay.com.