The Maryland Line Confederate Soldiers' Home; and Confederate Veterans' Organizations in Maryland. by Daniel Carroll Toomey. sc, 8.5 x 11, 148pp., index, illus.

Union Civil War Veteransí Organizations in Maryland

Daniel Carroll Toomey

When the Civil War ended in 1865 approximately 3,000,000 men had served in the armies of the two opposing forces. By the end of the year Confederate prisoners had been paroled and Union volunteers discharged. Most of those that had survived the war returned to their hometowns and attempted to reestablish their civilian lives. Thousands of others headed west in search of land, gold, or to help build the Transcontinental Railroad. For them the fighting was over, but they would not simply turn their backs and forget what they had done. For the rest of their lives they would be Old Soldiers, The Boys in Blue & Gray, Veterans.

It is a common occurrence for veterans of any conflict to see the companionship of those they served with or at the very least associate with others who had shared the same experience. The officers of Washingtonís army formed the Order of the Cincinnati after the American Revolution. Following the fall of Mexico City in 1848 Scottís officers formed the Aztec Society and there were other organizations, both national and local, for all who had served during the war with Mexico. Several things made this war different. Americans were on both sides of the conflict. In border-states like Maryland, previous antagonists lived in the same towns and sometimes in the same households, and finally the shear number of participants was unprecedented for a war in North America.

The Grand Army of the Republic was the first national organization for Union veterans. It would function on a national, state, and local level. Its activities were supported by the Womanís Relief Corps and Sons of Union Veterans, but the GAR did not hold a monopoly on all veterans activities. Officers formed the Loyal Legion. Others formed their organizations around branches of service or unit history. There was the National Association of Naval Veterans of the United States, The Society of the Army of the Potomac, and the Society of the Burnside Expedition and 9th Corps to name a few. Added to this were organizations based on length of service, prisoners of war, and regimental groups. Finally there were social groups such as the Grand Army Club.

The counterpart to the GAR was the Confederate Veterans. It too would function at the national, state, and local levels with its own support groups comprised of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, Sons of Confederate Veterans, and Children of the Confederacy. To this was added the same bewildering number of united based organizations from the Cavalry Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia to Survivors of the Stonewall Brigade, to service in Company A of the Second Maryland Infantry known as the Murray Association. Two things are worth noting. First, in a small state the size of Maryland all of these organizations and more flourished for veterans of both armies. Second, the considerable impact that veteranís activities had on the post war society has been all but forgotten by the general population.

It is not possible to describe every known veteranís organization in Maryland or present examples of every membership badge and ribbon because no such repository of knowledge and memorabilia exists. There will be gaps and there will be mistakes for which I assume full responsibility. I do hope that this humble collection of illustrations and text will draw the readerís attention to some unknown item within their personal collection or familyís archives and give it added meaning.

This book would not have been possible without many years of help and guidance from my good friend Everitt Bowles of Woodstock, GA. I would also like to recognize the collective knowledge of the Civil War Veterans Historical Association and its excellent newsletter edited by George Kane.

Daniel Carroll Toomey

Linthicum, Maryland