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"The Grand Army
of the Republic Founded in 1880" Shortly after the end of the Civil
War, a group of Union veterans formed the Grand Army of the Republic, a national
organization dedicated to preserving the memory and interests of the Union veteran. A
national call for decorating veteran's graves on April 30, 1868, originally known as
Decoration Day, later became Memorial Day. Although local people heeded the 1868 call,
Westminster area veterans did not form a local post until 1880. An article in the June 26
issue of the Westminster American Sentinel
newspaper described the founding of the Westminster organization: |
There has been established in Westminster, a Post
of the Grand Army of the Republic, named after Lt. Wm. H. Burns, of this city, who was
killed while gallantly bearing the flag of the 6th Md. Regt., in the battle of Winchester,
1864, when it had fallen to the ground by the death of the color sergeant.
We are informed that an impression is sought to
be made by hostile parties, who had no sympathy for Union soldiers during the war; that
this post, like any other throughout the country, is but an adjunct to and supporter of
one political party (the Republican) to the exclusion of all other parties. We say
that an attempt is being made to deter and dissuade soldiers in this county who faithfully
served their county that it might be saved from rebellion and its consequences, from
joining the G. A. R., because, as is alleged, it is a political organization, and inimical
to what is now called democracy in this State. The G. A. R. needs no defence or even
explanation at our hands, it need not reply to the politicians of either party, for its
broad principle is "loyalty" to the Union our fathers formed, and which they
propose, having saved it through fire, shall not
be destroyed in any event, so long as they live and are able to defend it.
When those who sympathized with the South and
wanted rebellion to succeed, but who did not have the courage to join their army and risk
their lives in battle to destroy that Union, should at this late day assail and impugn the
motives of Union soldiers, and thereby prevent them from joining the post, is so patent,
so self-evident, that the way-faring man though a fool may read and understand it, be he
ever so stupid.
To show that the G. A. R. is non-political, it is
only necessary to cite, such Democrats as Gen. McClellan, Hancock, Slocum, Porter, Palmer,
Schofield, Franklin, and in Maryland Gen'ls Phelps and Horn, and Col's Webster, Wallace
and others. They are men who know and appreciate the feeling of comradeship, which
comes from duty well performed, through trials of danger, and we apprehend they are men,
that the associations of a soldier's life bind with a tie so tight that all the ingenuity
of stay-at-home rebels cannot loose or break. The G. A. R. is no more political than
Masonry, Odd Fellowship, Knights of Pythias, order of mechanics, or any other order
formed, as we believe, for good and benevolent purposes.
It seeks to foster and preserve the memories of
deeds gloriously done in a battle for the right, and it does not withhold need of praise
from any man, it matters not to which party he belongs, so he only gave battle on the side
of the right, fought for the preservation of the Union and against a rebellion which
sought to overthrow and destroy the Union.
We have though it best to write frankly on this
subject and to say to all Ex soldiers of the Union, that
in our opinion it is to your interest to connect yourselves with some Post, that in
doing so you violate no religious or political conviction and that it is not in any way
allied to or the creature of any political party; when we find the same old political
hacks, who talked treason in 1861, decrying against our organization, we feel it to be our
duty to stand up for the right now, as we did
against rebellion and treason then. In a
word that soldiers who, without regard to party, fought to save that Union then, are
entitled, as it is their duty to cherish the memories of the contest and meet when and as
they please to celebrate a victory so magnificently won." |
| As the article indicates, the founding of
the local G.A.R. post was not without controversy, evidence that the issues that divided
local citizens during the war had not been fully resolved. To the member's credit, the early Burns Post Decoration Day observances
included honoring the grave of a Confederate officer killed during the June 29, 1863
cavalry skirmish in Westminster. The records of the Burns Post are preserved at the
Historical Society and show that the organization recruited 136 members between 1880 and
1913. The members took an active roll in local community events especially the annual
Decoration Day observances until a younger generation of World War I veterans assumed the
responsibility. By the mid-1930s the local Civil War veteran had passed into history.
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| Photo caption: | Members of Burns Post No. 13, Grand Army
of the Republic posed in 1897 wearing the
blue wool G.A.R. uniform and star-shaped membership badges. The future editor of this
paper, John H. Mitten, appears second from the right. J. Leland Jordan Collection,
Historical Society of Carroll County. |