Grand Army of the Republic

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G.A.R. Memorial, Washington, D.C.

The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army who had served in the American Civil War. The successor organization is the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW). Founded by Benjamin F. Stephenson on April 6, 1866, in Decatur, Illinois, the organization was based partly on the traditions of Freemasonry, and partly on military tradition, being divided into "Departments" at the state level and "Posts" at the community level; military-style uniforms were worn by its members. It reached its largest size in 1890, with 490,000 members. There were posts in every state in the U.S., and several posts overseas.

1 History
2 Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
3 See also
4 Notes
5 External links

[edit] History

The organization wielded considerable political clout nationwide; between 1868 and 1908, no Republican was nominated to the presidency without a GAR endorsement. The GAR is among the first organized interest groups in American politics.

The GAR was active in pension legislation, establishing retirement homes for soldiers, and many other areas which concerned Union veterans. Their influence led to the creation of the Old Soldiers' Homes of the late 19th century which evolved into the current United States Department of Veterans Affairs.

In 1868, General Order #11 of the GAR called for May 30 to be designated as a day of memorial for Union veterans; originally called "Decoration Day," this later evolved into the U.S. national Memorial Day holiday.

In the 19th century, there was some controversy over the fact that the membership badge of the GAR closely resembled the Army's version of the Medal of Honor, causing confusion and animosity among veterans. The issue was resolved with a re-design of the latter in 1896.

The organization held an annual "National Encampment" every year from 1866 to 1949; the last member, Albert Woolson, died at age 109 in 1956.

The GAR also generated several auxiliary organizations (National Woman's Relief Corps^[1], Ladies of the GAR^[2]) some of which are still extant. A comparable organization for Confederate veterans was the United Confederate Veterans.

There is a GAR cemetery on Seattle, Washington's Capitol Hill, just north of Lake View Cemetery. Established in 1895, it was turned over to the Parks Department in 1922. ^[3]

U.S. Highway 6 is known as the Grand Army of the Republic highway its entire length.^[4]

In 1956 it was dissolved; its records went to the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., and its badges, flags, and official seal to the Smithsonian Institution.

[edit] Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War

The GAR created the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) in 1881 to ensure the preservation of their own mission after Union war veterans had all died.

The SUVCW is the legal successor to the GAR and is a Congressionally Chartered Corporation headquartered in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.