Vanderbilt will not appeal a state court decision regarding the inscription on the pediment of Memorial Hall, a residence hall on the Peabody campus, ending a lawsuit initiated by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The Tennessee chapter of the UDC filed the breach of contract suit in 2002 when the university announced it was dropping the word “Confederate” from the official name of the building, which was constructed by Peabody College in 1933 with partial financial support from the UDC. The lawsuit was dismissed by a Davidson County chancery court in 2003, but the Tennessee Court of Appeals overturned that decision in May, ruling that the university could not remove the actual inscription unless it reimbursed the UDC an unspecific amount of money based on the current value of the organization’s original $50,000 payment. The court decision only affects the actual inscription on the building; all publications, maps and housing assignments refer to “Memorial Hall.” In addition, the university plans to create an annual forum or lecture that will deal with issues of race, history, memory and the Civil War.

Posted 07/25/05