Grand Army of the Republic. Philip R. Schuyler Post, No. 51 records
Collection 1825
1874-1931, undated(7.0 Linear feet ; 3 boxes, 44 volumes, 1 flat file)
Table of Contents
Summary Information
- Repository
- The Historical Society of Pennsylvania
- Creator
- Grand Army of the Republic. Dept. of Pennsylvania.
- Title
- Grand Army of the Republic. Philip R. Schuyler Post, No. 51 records
- ID
- 1825
- Date [inclusive]
- 1874-1931, undated
- Extent
- 7.0 Linear feet ; 3 boxes, 44 volumes, 1 flat file
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by Cathleen Miller
- Sponsor
- The Digital Center for Americana pilot project was funded by the Barra Foundation and several individual donors.
- Language
- English
- Mixed materials [Oversize]
- Flat File 1
- Mixed materials [Box]
- 1-3
- Mixed materials [Volume]
- 1-44
- Abstract
- This collection consists of records from the Philip R. Schuyler Post No. 51 of the Grand Army of the Republic, the Ladies Aid Society No. 4, the Sons of Union Veterans Camp No. 2, and the Auxiliary to the Sons of Union Veterans. The majority of records pertain to the operation and membership of the Philip R. Schuyler Post No. 51 and include the constitution and by-laws, applications for membership, cash books, dues ledgers, member lists, "black books" that list rejected applicants, correspondence, minutes, orders and reports. Ladies Aid Society/Auxiliary records consist of expenses and dues ledgers, minutes, orders, and receipt books. These records provide a thorough illustration of the operations and concerns of the Schuyler Post in Philadelphia during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Preferred Citation note
Cite as: [Indicate cited item or series here], Grand Army of the Republic. Philip R. Schuyler Post, No. 51 records (Collection 1825), The Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
Organizational History
The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was one of many veterans' organizations created after the conclusion of the Civil War. These patriotic and social groups helped to unite veterans and to form powerful political lobbies, which advocated for the rights and compensation of veterans. The GAR was founded in 1866 as a national organization, which was divided into departments by state. Membership was limited to honorably discharged Union veterans of the Civil War who applied to local posts; applicants' admission was voted upon by the post membership. The Philip R. Schuyler Post No. 51 was a local division of the Department of Pennsylvania, which was founded in Philadelphia in 1874.
The organization hosted yearly encampments on the state and national level that served as the rule-making boards of the Grand Army of the Republic. In addition to these formal state and national gatherings, each post hosted a range of social and formal commemorative activities, which included attending funerals of post members, and hosting memorial services, lectures, and trips.
The Grand Army of the Republic formed several allied organizations during its existence, one of which was the Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW). The SUVCW eventually took over all of the Grand Army of the Republic's operations and became the steward of the GAR history.
Scope and Contents note
This collection contains records from the Philip R. Schuyler Post No. 51 of the Grand Army of the Republic, the Ladies Aid Society No. 4, the Sons of Union Veterans Camp No. 2, and the Auxiliary to the Sons of Union Veterans.
The majority of records pertain to the operation and membership of the Philip R. Schuyler Post No. 51 and include the constitution and by-laws, applications for membership, cash books, dues ledgers, member lists, black books, correspondence, minutes, orders and reports. The bulk of the collection is housed in volumes that are arranged by date and material type. Another significant group of materials relates to the activities of the Ladies Aid Society/Sons of Union Veterans Auxiliary. These records consist of expenses and dues ledgers, minutes, orders, and receipt books, which document the Auxiliary's charitable and relief work.
This collection provides a thorough understanding of the operations and activities of the Schuyler Post in Philadelphia.
Administrative Information
Publication Information
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania 2010
1300 Locust StreetPhiladelphia, PA, 19107
215-732-6200
Conditions Governing Access note
This collection is open for research.
Provenance
Gift of Philip R. Schuyler Post No. 51, GAR through Maxwell Whiteman.
Related Materials
Related materials at other institutions
The Grand Army of the Republic Museum and Library in Philadelphia holds records for many Philadelphia posts of the GAR. See their website http://www.garmuslib.org/ for a list of related collections.
Related materials at HSP
Grand Army of the Republic. Courtland Saunders Post No. 21. (Collection 1574).
The Historical Society's library holds a wide selection of volumes, pamphlets, and other material related to the Grand Army of the Republic. Some of these materials document the history of the organization, while others focus on specific events. Search our online catalog (www.hsp.org) for a full list of these items.
Controlled Access Headings
Corporate Name(s)
- Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. Auxiliary.
- Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.
Subject(s)
- Patriotic Societies--Pennsylvania.
Collection Inventory
| Box | Folder | |||
|
Applications for membership (1875-1882, undated) |
1 | 1 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Applications to the Citizens' Corps (1894) |
1 | 2-3 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Applications to the Citizens' Corps (1890-1917, undated) |
1 | 4-6 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Ballots (1904-1911) |
1 | 7 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Bills and receipts (1891-1897) |
1 | 8-10 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Bills and receipts (1897-1920) |
2 | 1-2 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Blank forms (undated) |
2 | 3 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Correspondence (1896-1919) |
2 | 4 | ||
|
|
||||
|
GAR Pennsylvania Headquarters orders (1893-1915) |
2 | 5-9 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Grand Army Association of Philadelphia and vicinity (1898-1908) |
2 | 10 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Membership information, including lists of deaths (1897-1922) |
2 | 11 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Miscellaneous committee reports (1897-1908) |
2 | 12 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Miscellaneous printed matter (1893-1917, undated) |
2 | 13 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Muster rolls and membership certificates (1890-1897) |
2 | 14 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Orders and circulars--GAR Headquarters (1892-1920) |
3 | 1-4 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Ordinance designating Philip R. Schuyler Post Park (undated) |
3 | 5 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Poems (1903, undated) |
3 | 6 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Post No. 51 Memorial services and circulars (1897-1917) |
3 | 7 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Post No. 51 orders (1893-1913) |
3 | 8 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Proceedings, findings and sentence of John F. Bechter (1894) |
3 | 9 | ||
|
|
||||
|
P.R. Schuyler Auxiliary No. 4 notes and receipts (1908-1927) |
3 | 10 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Quarterly reports of first sergeant (1887-1888) |
3 | 11 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Quartermaster's monthly reports (1891-1920) |
3 | 12-14 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War constitution (1920) |
3 | 15 | ||
|
|
||||
|
Union Defender's service and family record (undated) |
3 | 16 | ||
|
|
||||
| Oversize | ||||
|
"The Banner: Patriotic Journal of America" (1914) |
Flat File 1 | |||
|
|
||||
| Volume | ||||
|
Address book (undated) |
1 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Black books of Post 51 (1875-1896) |
2-3 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Cash ledger (1897-1908) |
4 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Constitution and by-laws (1877) |
5 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Dues ledger (1881-1928) |
6-20 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Membership list (undated) |
21 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Post 51 minutes (1874-1879) |
22-23 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Post 51 minutes (1884-1922) |
24-33 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Ladies Aid Society/Sons of Veterans Auxiliary dues ledgers (1892-1928) |
34-35 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Ladies Aid Society expense ledger (1906-1928) |
36 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Ladies Aid Society/Sons of Veterans Auxiliary minutes (1892-1924) |
37-40 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Orders from national headquarters of Auxiliary to Sons of Union Veterans (1924-1931) |
41 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Orders from Pennsylvania headquarters of Auxiliary to Sons of Union Veterans (1924-1931) |
42 | |||
|
|
||||
|
Ladies Aid Society/Sons of Veterans Auxiliary receipt books (1893-1923) |
43-44 | |||
|
|
||||