Marietta in History
Mattie Harris Lyon
1850-1947
Mattie Harris Lyon was just 10 years old when she heard the news that Abraham Lincoln had been elected president. Young as she was, she had overheard enough political discussions to say, "…I knew it was a terrible calamity for our beloved Southland. My father was a butt-headed secessionist and was so excited over the event he wanted to fight right then." Mr. Harris was too old to enlist, but Mattie"s brothers went to war. They didn't come home alive.
Mattie survived privations and dislocations during the War and the post-war years. She married Mr. R. Lyon, a Marietta merchant, raised children and ran a boarding house on Cherokee Street. Pressed to record some of her memories for posterity, she wrote, "The Story of My Life - written for my dear boys to read when I am under the daisies." Throughout her life she was known for her kindness and civic spirit, including her passionate dedication to marking the 3,500 graves in the Confederate Cemetery. A statue was erected there in her honor on September 16, 2004, depicting her sitting on a bench reading her diary.
She wrote, "I am a good American now for 364 days in the year and I love our flag – the prettiest in all the world – but on Memorial Day, April 26, I am a Confederate and want no flag but the Stars and Bars."
Lyon, Mattie Harris. My Recollections of the War Between the States.
Lyon, Mattie Harris. The Story of My Life.
December 3, 1947. Marietta Daily Journal.
September 16, 2004. Atlanta Journal-Constitution.