John C. Calhoun

Leaders of Georgia's oldest city have voted to strip the name of a former vice president who advocated for slavery from a public square named in his honor more than 170 years ago. Calhoun Square in Savannah's downtown historic district was named in 1851 for John C. Calhoun, a South Carolina politician who served in Congress, in presidents' cabinets and as vice president over four decades. The Savannah City Council voted Thursday to remove Calhoun's name, noting that his outspoken support of slavery helped steer the South toward secession and the Civil War. The decision comes two years after honors to Calhoun were rescinded in his home state of South Carolina, including the removal of his statue from a square in Charleston.

Lawsuits filed to stop the removal of memorials to Confederate leaders and a pro-slavery congressman in a South Carolina city have been dropped. The Post and Courier reports that the American Heritage Association helped fund one of the lawsuits. It had been filed by descendants of John C. Calhoun, a former congressman and vice president who died before the Civil War. The suit had opposed the city of Charleston's removal of Calhoun's statue. Another suit opposed the removal of a Robert E. Lee Memorial Highway marker in Charleston, and the renaming of an auditorium that had been named after a treasury secretary of the Confederacy.

A statue of segregationist and former U.S. Vice President John C. Calhoun that was pulled from its high perch over Charleston almost two years ago still hasn't found a new home. Charleston leaders and officials at South Carolina's State Museum announced Monday they have started talking about a deal bringing the statue to the Columbia museum. But the final agreement is far from certain. Meanwhile, descendants of Calhoun have filed a lawsuit saying the statue was illegally removed and should be put back up.

A Los Angeles visual arts space wants to display a South Carolina statue of former vice president and slavery advocate John C. Calhoun as part of an art exhibit. But members of a city panel have raised concerns about the political nature of such a display. The Charleston Commission on History on Wednesday voted to delay making a recommendation to city council until more information could be provided. A nonprofit wants to move the Calhoun monument to Los Angeles to create an exhibit on Confederate imagery. Walker said the statue would be a valuable addition because Calhoun had "a pivotal role in the expansion and protection of slavery in the United States."