Albany County provided men for the following military units:
- Cavalry: Regiments, 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 13th, 16th, 18th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, 25th, 1st Mounted Rifles, 1st and 2nd Veteran
- Artillery: Regiments, Battery M, 1st; Battery C and M, 2nd; 4th, 7th, 13th, 14, and 16th
- Independent Batteries, 11th and 12th
- Sharpshooters: Regiments, 9th
- Engineers: Regiments, 15th and 50th
- Infantry: Regiments, 2nd, 3rd, 7th Veteran, 9th, 17th Veteran , 18th, 20th, 22nd, 30th, 34th, 43rd, 44th, 61st, 62nd, 63rd, 91st, 93rd, 104th, 148th, 175th, 177th, 179th, 184th, 186th, 188th, 189th, 192nd, and 194th1
To support and aid former Union soldiers, Surgeon Benjamin Franklin Stephenson founded the first Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) post in 1866 in Decatur, Illinois. Posts originally were set up like Union Army encampments that followed military specs.
By 1869, the structure of posts dropped its military system and became similar to Masonic Lodges and the posts acted more as Fraternal organizations. Membership soon increased. Due to its political lobbying the GAR fought for Civil War veterans and their widows in gaining pensions. The efforts of the GAR enabled the establishing of May 30th as Decoration Day where the graves of the war dead should be decorated with flowers. In 1971 Decoration Day became known as Memorial Day and also a federal holiday.
The following is a typical GAR marker that holds an American Flag. Unfortunately these markers are disappearing from cemeteries due to theft and for maintenance reasons. The markers are removed with negative motives without regard to the deceased veteran nor his family.
Albany soon followed forming its own GAR posts named after military officers who died on the battlefield.
- Lewis Benedict Post #5, chartered 30 January 1867
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| Lewis Benedict photo credit: JD Haren www.findagrave.com |
- George S. Dawson Post # 63, chartered 26 November 1875
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| George S. Dawson photo credit: Col. George L. Willard Camp # 154 |
- Lewis O. Morris Post # 121, chartered 20 August 1870
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| Lewis O. Morris photo credit: Col. George L. Willard Camp # 154 |
- Timothy J. Quinn Post #601, chartered 04 October 1886
- William A. Jackson Post # 644, 31 December 1889
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| William A. Jackson photo credit: Col. George L. Willard Camp # 154 |
The following Albany GAR Posts also formed Ladies Auxiliary Units:
- Lewis Benedict Woman's Relief Corps
- Lewis O. Morris Woman's Relief Corps
The Grand Army of the Republic dissolved in 1956 when its last member died. Albany saw its last Civil War veteran, Frederick W. Reohr, laid to rest on 16 August 1937. He was the last member of the Lewis Benedict Post.2 The GAR was succeeded by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) which is composed of male descendants of Union veterans.
For further reading see:
1. Data culled from an photocopied undocumented source in 1981.
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