Grand Army of the Republic
Grand Army of the Republic.The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was the largest and most powerful organization of Union army and navy veterans. Founded on 6 April 1866 at Decatur, Illinois, by former army surgeon Benjamin Franklin Stephenson, its proclaimed objects were “Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty.” Its basic unit was the local post, with membership open to any honorably discharged Union veteran. The social composition of GAR membership was cross‐class, and to some extent cross‐racial, though black veterans usually were relegated to segregated posts.
Between 1866 and 1872, the GAR operated as a virtual wing of the Republican Party, boosting the careers of soldier‐politicians such as Sen. John Logan of Illinois. After 1872, it entered a steep decline, reaching a low of 26,899 members in 1876. In the 1880s, the GAR revived as a fraternal order, emphasizing its secret initiation ritual and...
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