Care Of

G.A.R. MONUMENTS / CIVIL WAR MEMORIALS

By The

SONS OF UNION VETERANS OF THE CIVIL WAR

As Legal Heir to the GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC (G.A.R.), the preservation of monuments, memorials, and outdoor sculpture that was erected and dedicated by the G.A.R. is one of the most important purposes of the SONS OF UNION VETERANS OF THE CIVIL WAR (S.U.V.C.W.)! Our American tradition of Memorial Day, being founded by the G.A.R. in 1868, has been celebrated each year with many communities focusing part of their ceremonies at or near a G.A.R. Monument. With proper care, these monuments will continue to stand in tribute to those who saved the Union from the conflict of 1861 to 1865.

In recent years, Heritage Preservation [formerly known as the National Institute for the Conservation of Cultural Property (NIC)] and the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American Art have launched a joint project called SAVE OUTDOOR SCULPTURE! (abbreviated SOS!). The focus is to catalog all publicly accessible outdoor sculpture and to encourage fundraising for professional conservation work. The S.U.V.C.W. has joined this effort to assure that the SOS! project will include all G.A.R. Monuments that have sculpture as part of the memorial.

Not all G.A.R. Monuments include sculpture and so the S.U.V.C.W. has an interest, on a grander scale, to catalog all memorials with or without sculpture, including those that involve Civil War cannon, and even the most modest plaque.

Over the years, much has been done by others to identify G.A.R. Monuments and Civil War related Memorials erected by other parties. The effort being put forth by the S.U.V.C.W. is unique because of the following points. With the help of our Departments across the country, and the local Camps within them, we will physically search out and inspect each and every memorial that can be found. This will minimize the chance of any memorial being overlooked and more importantly, identify any professional restoration work that may be necessary - due to the effects of nature or vandalism. Realizing that anything on-the-books is "dated information", the S.U.V.C.W. will continue to regularly inspect memorials so that our data remains "current". Another important aspect of our project, is to contact the public authorities and private property owners tied to the sites that these memorials stand on, and encourage their proper care and upkeep.

The Department of Michigan, with the overwhelming support of its Camps, has launched an assessment program of G.A.R. Monuments and all other Civil War related memorials in Michigan! Information gathered from this effort will be posted and updated at this web site. Fundraising efforts are already under way to gather funds for professional restoration work on G.A.R. Monuments and Civil War Memorials found to need attention.

Interested parties may contact our Department Civil War Memorials Officer, Douglas R. Armstrong, at DOUG24MICH@aol.com.

We also invite you to visit the SOS! web site at http://www.heritagepreservation.org/PROGRAMS/SOS/sosmain.htm.

Thank you.