Summary

Although many people view UDC as one of the memorial organizations largely responsible for spreading the Lost Cause Narrative and attempting to vindicate the Confederacy, it also served as a way for elite white women of the South to emerge into the public sector of society. The Civil War caused a great disturbance to the antebellum lifestyle so many think back to today. The hoop skirts and rocking-chair front porches aside, these women sought to retain their often luxurious antebellum lives at all costs. Interestingly enough, they attempted to do so by stepping out of the typical gender conventions and into predominately male roles as the war required acclimation. This newfound public sphere offered them a voice they previously lacked and new opportunities to spread their beliefs. Women of the UDC used this voice not to further their new independence but instead to vindicate Confederate men and the Lost Cause through memorialization and indoctrination. By creating monuments, teaching children, and maintaining Confederate landmarks/grounds, the women were able to secure their place as defenders of Confederate values and Southern pride. With everything they did, they provided rich symbolism tying them to the Lost Cause and the South's intrinsic values, which didn't often align with the outcome of the war or the approaching Civil Rights concerns that America would face in the coming years. These Southern white women banned together to use their traditional gender roles as well as new adaptations in order to defend the cause their men had lost, even if it meant re-writing history through their own lens.I chose the title, Antebellum, as this was the lifestyle the ladies were seemingly working so desperately to get back not only for themselves, but for the men as well. I feel that many historians who have studied the UDC have failed to notice what the organization did for women as a whole in regards to finding a voice, regardless of their intent which supports white supremacist ideals.