State and federal leaders from President Lincoln down had promised to care for “those who have borne the burden, his widows, and orphans,” but they had little knowledge of how to accomplish the task. There was little political pressure to see that the promises were kept.
With that as background, groups of men began joining together – first for the camaraderie and then for political power. Emerging most powerful among the various organizations would be the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.), which by 1890 would number 409,489 veterans of the “War of the Rebellion.”
Founded in Decatur, Illinois on April 6, 1866 by Benjamin F. Stephenson, membership was limited to honorable discharged veterans of the Union Army, Navy, Marine Corps, or the Revenue Cutter Service who had served between April 12, 1861 and April 9, 1865.
The GAR founded soldier’s homes, was active in relief work and in pension legislation. Five members were elected President of the United States and, for a time, it was impossible to be nominated on the Republican ticket without the endorsement of the GAR voting block.
The final Encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic was held in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1949 and the last member, Albert Woolson died in 1956 at the age of 109 years.
Many GAR Posts sponsored Camps of the SV. In 1923 the SV name was changed to Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW), under which its federal charter was issued in 1954. The SUVCW is legally recognized as the heir to and representative of the GAR.
We are a patriotic organization whose goal is
to perpetuate the memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and the men who saved
the Union 1861 to 1865; to assist in every practicable way in the preservation
and making available for research of documents and records pertaining to the
GAR and its members; to cooperate in doing honor to all who have patriotically
served our country in any war; to teach patriotism, and the duties of citizenship,
the true history of our country, and the love and honor of our flag; to locate,
assess, and seek to preserve our Civil War memorials; to locate and record the
graves of Civil War soldiers; and to camaraderie using the principals of Fraternity,
Charity, and Loyalty.