Introduction to my interest

My mothers father was a Whiting. They lived in eastern North Carolina. I recently moved to Raleigh, NC and then took a family beach vacation. While on this vacation a Whiting cousin mentioned a poem by our ancestor. She is brilliant and remembered the whole thing. Did I mention that she is in her 20's. Our family talked a lot of family history and she enjoyed it as a youngster. She told me that the poem was on a obelisk in Raleigh in a cemetery. I soon discovered this obelisk is in a Confederate Oakwood cemetery that is only a mile from my home. This has led me on quite a journey and I would like to keep track of what I have learned about my history.