In 2019, almost a century after Maine adopted its state song “The State of Maine Song,” and seven years after the state adopted its state march “The Dirigo March,” Governor Janet Mills signed into legislation a bill which made “The Ballad of the 20th Maine” the official state ballad of Maine. The ballad was written by Griffin Sherry, a member of the Maine-based folk band The Ghost of Paul Revere.
“The Ballad of the 20th Maine” tells the story of Andrew Tozier, a member of the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the American Civil War. Beginning with his early life in Lichfield, Maine, the song follows him as a runaway teenager before he joins the Union army. The rest of the song focuses on Tozier’s role in the 20th Maine’s iconic last stand at Little Round Top during the Battle of Gettysburg. Tozier, by that point injured, was the colors-bearer for the regiment, and thus “alone I stood with colors, flying proud and true, for to let my northern brothers know the battle was not through.”
Representative Scott Cuddy introduced the bill to recognize the song as Maine’s state ballad as a way to both recognize Maine musicians and to commemorate the sacrifice of Maine’s men who fought in the Civil War. The bill ended up passing unanimously in both chambers, but did face some initial objection in the State and Local Government Committee from two Republican representatives. Rep. Frances Head thought that the pro-Union message would be insulting to the South, while Rep. Roger Reed praised the confederate cause, saying that “Many of them were great Christian men on both sides. They fought hard and they were fighting for states’ rights as they saw them.”
While these comments were made by a minority group which had no effect on the final passing of the bill, they prompt an important discussion about controversy and commemoration. Even recognizing the smallest and most insignificant audience reactions to controversial pieces of commemoration can give great insight. The internet has given us access to reactions that we could never have from the past—for example, Andrew Gockel of Jefferson, Maine. Wrote on twitter that “Rep. Scott Cuddy of Maine is partaking too much of mind-altering drugs” in response to Cuddy’s initial bill proposal.
These reactions—both from elected officials and Twitter commentators—tell us about the state of our country and its position on commemoration of our own dark past. In an era when Confederate monuments are at the forefront of thought, it’s unfortunately difficult to be surprised that legislators are arguing that the Civil War was fought solely about “states’ rights.” As the country grapples with how to commemorate our history, reactions to new commemorations can reveal the truth about where we are—which is perhaps much less far along than we might think if we ignored the controversy
References
@Andrew_from_Jef (Andrew Gockel). “Rep. Scott Cuddy of Maine is partaking too much of mind-altering drugs. = Should this Ghost of Paul Revere song be Maine’s new state ballad? https://t.co/p9sPsL3UTK” Twitter, 12 Apr 2019, 6:43 a.m. https://twitter.com/andrew_from_jef/status/1116653181738672128?s=21
Burnham, Emily. “Portland folk trio’s song named official Maine state ballad,” Bangor Daily News, 7 Jun 2019, https://bangordailynews.com/2019/06/07/news/portland-folk-trios-song-named-official-maine-state-ballad/. Accessed 23 May 2021.
Leary, Mail. “Listen: Maine Now Has An Official State Ballad,” Maine Public Radio, 7 Jun 2019, https://www.mainepublic.org/politics/2019-06-07/listen-maine-now-has-an-official-state-ballad. Accessed 23 May 2021.
Tipping, Mike. “New state ballad honors 20th Maine, despite pro-Confederate objections,” Maine Beacon, 7 Jun 2019, https://mainebeacon.com/new-state-ballad-honors-20th-maine-despite-pro-confederate-objections/. Accessed 23 May 2021.