Tombstone Tuesday : GAR Marker

Tombstone Tuesday this week is on a Grand Army of the Republic grave marker in cemetery that is purposely not listed. The cemetery is not named because a very rare; in my opinion, grave marker for a member of the DKV (Deutscher Kreiger Verein) that I wrote about two years ago has come up missing. These relics are the property of the family members whom are buried. Perhaps the family of the missing DKV marker took it; but I doubt it. I will not point theives in the direction of these markers from the past.

Dawson Post # 63 grave marker

The Grand Army of the Republic was a fraternal organization for the Union Armed Forces from the Civil War. The GAR was founded in 1866 and dissolved 90 years later in 1956 when its last member died. The GAR was succeeded by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) which is composed of male descendants of Union veterans.

Albany had the following GAR posts.

Lewis Benedict Post #5, chartered 30 January 1867
George S. Dawson Post # 63, chartered 26 November 1875
Lewis O. Morris Post # 121, chartered 20 August 1870
Timothy J. Quinn Post #601, chartered 04 October 1886
William A. Jackson Post # 644, 31 December 1889

Located on the north side of the Albany County Courthouse on Columbia Street is the entrance to the GAR room where some of these organizations met.

GAR room entrance at Albany County Courthouse