OKOLONA, Miss.(WTVA) -- Work to restore the Okolona Confederate Cemetery moves forward.
Cemetery Steering Committee member Perry Grubbs says it will take an estimated $56,000 to cover costs for new flag poles, tree removal, fencing, new plaques, lighting and other needs.
Grubbs says it's vital improvements be made to this cemetery where men and boys are buried from 12 southern states, including North Carolina, Missouri, Kentucky, Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas.
The Battle of Okolona in February 1864 claimed the lives of 150 Union and Confederate soldiers.
People come from all over the world to tour the cemetery.
"We're doing our best to make the cemetery very attractive for those visitors and guests as well as to honor the men and boys who died in the Civil War," Grubbs says.
Once the work is completed, there are plans to hold a reenactment commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Okolona.
