Often overlooked among surviving Civil War accounts are the records of the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.). The largest of all Civil War veterans organizations, from 1866 to 1956 the Grand Army of the Republic counted hundreds of thousands of Union Army veterans among its ranks in more than 10,000 local posts. While voluminous recordkeepers, the G.A.R. did not adhere to a firm policy for records retention upon the closure of a local post. As a result, local post records have become scattered or lost entirely.
Among the most fascinating of G.A.R. records are Personal War Sketches. Surfacing just before the turn of the century, these sketches were compiled from pre-printed questionnaires or through oral histories conducted with the local Post Historian, who would then transcribe the dictations into a bound register. These questionnaires would pose veterans with more than two dozen pointed questions relating to their service during the Civil War.
Researchers can use any number of resources to verify much of the information these veterans provided. Dates of service, rank, organizations, hospital stays—these can all be checked against service records, many of which have been recently digitized.
Most intriguing, though, these Personal War Sketches touch on subjects that don’t always convey on standardized government forms. At the end of each questionnaire or interview, the veterans were asked to name their most intimate comrades during their service; what each veteran deemed his most important contribution to the war; and if there were any specific events they would like to ‘concisely’ record for posterity. Their answers offer a glimpse into the feelings and memory
