Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 18, 1992 TAG: 9203180334
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOANNE R. GREENE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
As a black mother of three, I believe it is time to set the record straight. I have fallen in love with the Roanoke Valley in our two years here, and feel a responsibility to share what my husband and I have learned over the past few years concerning the history of the young man depicted in the "statue" of Jocko.
In the Army Reserve a few years ago, my husband was what then was known as an EO (equal opportunity) officer. He was responsible for race relations-awareness programs, to help foster a better understanding among members of his branch of the service's soldiers.
During this time, he became acquainted with a gentleman who made him aware of the true story of Jocko. After learning the story from Carlton A. Funn of Northern Virginia, who for various reasons researched this young man's history, my family and I are very proud to have a statue of Jocko in our front yard.
When George Washington crossed the Delaware River on a snowy Christmas Eve in 1776, he used a group of several black men who had recently joined the Continental Army. Two of those 62 men were Jocko's father and Jocko himself, 12 years old at the time. The men were to cross the river ahead of the troops, and secure the horses needed to keep communications open.
Taking his assignment very seriously, Jocko held the horses himself. Washington was relieved to find the horses when he landed; they were not tied to a hitching post but to a frozen figure, Jocko. Washington was so moved that when he returned to Mount Vernon, he had a statue erected in honor of Jocko.
The statue became popular and was often duplicated. By 1865, replicas of the Jocko statue were widely manufactured for use as hitching posts.
What a shame something so full of history and pride has never been taught as a part of our country's important history - considering all we know of Johnny Appleseed or the Pied Piper. I certainly pray the residents of the Roanoke Valley would take the time to learn of things before continuing in their ignorance.
Must we lose all of our sense of history simply because of the inflated racial prejudices of the masses in our society?
I invite any person within the valley area to come to this black woman's home and be greeted by the Jocko that adorns my front yard. I will gladly give history lessons on one of the finer points in our history.
Joanne R. Greene lives in Blue Ridge.
by CNB