The Cape Girardeau City Council approved a resolution to accept a bronze sculpture of a black, Civil War-era Union soldier to be placed in a city park.
The council approved the resolution Tuesday without comment. The Southeast Missourian reports the statue could be erected by June in Cape Girardeau's Ivers Square. The park already has memorials for Union and Confederate soldiers.
The council last year renamed Common Pleas Courthouse Park in honor of former Cape Girardeau slave James Ivers and his wife, Harriet. James Ivers died of illness while serving in the Union Army in 1863.
He was among more than 200 black men who enlisted in the Cape Girardeau Union Army in 1863-64.
Supporters told the council last month they hope to raise $60,000 to fund the project.
