April 25, 2002

By JAY REEVES
Associated Press Writer

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - There's a little-known side of Paul Bryant Jr. that has nothing to do with Alabama football.

Best known as the son of the late coach Paul "Bear" Bryant and a trustee who has donated millions to the university, Bryant also is one of the nation's leading advocates for the preservation of Civil War battlefields.

The businessman who flourished in the dog-track industry has donated money to help purchase and protect historic battlefields, and this month was named chairman of the Civil War Preservation Trust, a national organization with 39,000 members.

Unlike neo-Confederate groups that promote Southern secession or campaign to fly the Confederate battle flag, officials with the trust say their sole mission is to preserve historic sites.

"Our primary interest is in buying dirt. We try to avoid other, controversial issues," said Jim Campi, a spokesman for the group.

The president of the trust, Jim Lighthizer, said Bryant has an amazing knowledge of the war, especially battles and campaigns that involved Alabama troops.

"He can go to any battlefield and tell you if there were Alabama troops there, their regiment numbers, everything," Lighthizer said. "He can talk knowledgeably about almost any general from either side."

Bryant is president of Greene Group, a privately held company involved in dog tracks, casino management, reinsurance and farming. Last month, he gave $10 million to Alabama, his alma mater, for an athletics expansion.

While he rarely makes public comments, Bryant is eager in discussing his passion for preserving Civil War sites.

Bryant said he missed nearly three years of school due to illness while growing up in Kentucky, where his famous father coached from 1946 through 1953, and he spent much of his time at home reading books about the war.

His father wasn't interested in the war at all, but the younger Bryant is an active member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans in Tuscaloosa and serves as a trustee of the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond, Va.

Active in battlefield preservation work for about 10 years, Bryant said he helps raise money for land purchases and sometimes lobbies lawmakers for government funding.

"The scope is for all battlefields of the War Between the States - even in New Mexico and Kansas, places you don't normally think of," said Bryant, whose great-great grandfather was in the 2nd Alabama Cavalry.

There were about 10,000 armed conflicts during the war, Bryant said, and Congress has established a list of 384 "priority" sites for preservation.

"We try to zero in on those, but it's really an opportunistic thing," he said.

Saving areas from "urban sprawl" is the biggest challenge, according to Bryant. "Our tactic is to try to work something out buying land. We don't lie down in front of bulldozers," he said.

The trust has helped protect more than 14,000 acres of battleground at more than 75 sites in 18 states.

Included are parcels at Antietam and South Mountain, Md.; Gettysburg, Pa.; Shiloh and Stones River, Tenn.; and Brandy Station, Malvern Hill and Manassas, Va.