Grand Army of the Republic Plaque Presentation Souvenir at the Milwaukee Library's Centennial Hall, formerly "GAR Memorial Hall" March 21, 1998 By PDC Stephen A. Michaels

The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War is a congressionally chartered patriotic and educational organization created in 1881 and recognized by the Grand Army of the Republic as its legal successor. Among the charges given to the Sons by the Grand Army veterans was to preserve and perpetuate the memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and of the men who saved the Union of this country in 1861-1865 and to cooperate in doing honor to all who have patriotically served this country. The Grand Army of the Republic may best be described as a visionary veterans organization whose members' dedication not only helped to preserve a nation, but also helped to ensure, through the establishment and institutionalization of laws, traditions and memorials, that our veterans and their contributions would not be forgotten by the American public. Unfortunately, much of our community has forgotten the men who met here, in this room, once a week, preserving friendships and memories of the past, while planning for the future. Forgotten and perhaps lost forever are the artifacts, records and photos from another era that adorned these walls. Forgotten too is the room that contained in body and soul what Milwaukee knew about the American Civil War. When the E.B. Wolcott Post was chartered on January 14, 1880, there was a renewed determination among the post's charter members. Nearly all of these men had been with posts which had failed earlier. These men were determined that time would be different. effort would be successful. The charter members of the post were: W.L. Pavey, A.B.F. Way, S.F. Hammond, Frank W. Harwood, Florian J. Reis, W.E. Coates, Joseph P. Rundle, Omar L. Rosenkrans, Henry A. Valentin, Henry G. Rogers, Henry C. Koch, Charles P. Huntington, Edward Ferguson, Irving M. Bean, Garth W. James and Charles H. Boynton. East end of Memorial Hall (1915) E.B. Wolcott Post #1 in 1938 Dr. Erastus B. Wolcott, a Milwaukee physician revered by veteran as a friend and active advocate for universal veterans health care, had just died 9 days earlier. The good doctor had to be memorialized. And there was great anticipation in Milwaukee as preparations were already underway for the phenomenal Soldiers and Sailors reunion to be held that June. This reunion was credited with doubling our city's population in the next 12 years and trebling the city's industries. This reunion and a general reform of the Grand Army of the Republic brought about swift growth in the E.B. Wolcott Post. So much growth in fact, that the E.B. Wolcott Post was continually looking for a new post room for its ever increasing membership. The old Knights of Pythias Hall on Wisconsin Street was the Post's first regular quarters. The Post held its first meeting in the hall over No. 1 Grand (Wisconsin) Avenue on December 20th, 1882. The organization continued to grow, and soon these quarters became too small for the large and increasing membership. Early in 1886, the Post moved to quarters in the Light Horse Squadron Armory building, where it remained for 5 years. On October 10, 1890, the Post left its armory quarters and, preceded by its drum Dr. Erastus B. Wolcott corps, marched to the handsome Post rooms in the Academy of Music building. The Academy of Music was the E.B. Wolcott post's home from 1890 to 1899. Note the large GAR Badge hanging in the second story window. The Grand Army Post room was a house of friends. "It was there that the general and the private, the merchant prince and the clerk, the millionaire and the laborer, sat side by side as comrades, bound each to the other by the tenderness of ties, yet the most enduring of any in this world outside the family circle." As early as 1891, the Milwaukee Sentinel reported on the GAR's need for a memorial hall in Milwaukee in which to preserve a large number of valuable war relics for future generations. Furthermore, the veterans themselves felt that the hall should be in the new library building, then in the planning stages. In 1897, the E.B. Wolcott Post contemplated being possibly the only post left in the state within a decade. The lease to its current headquarters was to expire in two years and the post considered building a club house for it and other patriotic societies. The club house was never built. Instead, the post moved twice more. The second and last time, in 1913, the E.B. Wolcott Post began moving its many trophies West end of Memorial Hall (1915) of war, records and mementos to this hall. By that time only 5 of the charter members who started the post were still living. The post was still the largest in the state with 195 members. By 192 1, all the other posts in Milwaukee had consolidated with the Wolcott Post. The Post attended National Encampments as an organization at St. Louis, Columbus, Milwaukee, Boston and Detroit. Two members were representatives to the lst National Encampment held at Indianapolis in 1866. The total number mustered into the Post was 712. The Post's membership represented service in organizations from 21 states, four of which were southern-West Virginia, Kentucky, Florida and Missouri. Nearly every regiment or battery leaving Wisconsin was represented among its membership. Ever cognizant of its own mortality, the Wolcott Post allowed our camp, C.K. Pier Badger Camp #1 to meet here, beginning in 1919. Auxiliary #4 began meeting here in 192 1. We had responsibility for handling the ~hall's rentals until 1926 Many changes have taken place in our city and in this library since this room was last called "GAR Memorial Hall," and known as the home of the E.B. Wolcott Post #l. We here today ... remember these men of the E.B. Wolcott Post #1, Grand Army of the Republic, not just for who they were, but for the city that they became. We remember that this hall was their cherished home, where they celebrated successful patriotic initiatives; where they mourned the loss of beloved comrades. We remember that the E.B. Wolcott Post reached far beyond the walls of this hall: Ensuring that the U.S. Flag was flown over every public school in Wisconsin, Making presentations to schools children about patriotism and the Civil War, Raising money for indigent veterans, Publishing the Memorial Day Annual, and much more. These veterans represented a cross-section of Milwaukee. These veterans represented us both in war...and in peace. To these men we dedicate our work to build a better community for future generations. To the Milwaukee Public Library, we present this plaque in their memory. Speaking at the Plaque Presentation were City Librarian Kathleen Huston, Milwaukee Mayor John 0. Norquist, Milwaukee County Executive F. Tom Ament, and Wisconsin Secretary of Veterans Affairs Raymond Boland. E.B. Wolcott Post #1 GAR Members of Distinction U.S. Senator Joseph V. Quarles, Milwaukee Mayor and Wisconsin Governor George W. Peck, Brig. Gen. L.W. Cooke, USA, Gen. Arthur MacArthur, USA, LtC. Jerome Watrous, WNG, Byron Kilboum, Charles E. Estabrook, Augustus G. Weissert, Milw. Soldiers Home Gov. Cornelius Wheeler, and Zalmon Gilbert Simmons. The Post furnished two Commanders-in-Chief of the GAR: A.G. Weissert in 1892 and Frank A. Walsh in 1926.

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