The GAR Memorial Museum displays artifacts, photographs and documents from the Civil War. In addition, visitors will also find on display memorabilia and artifacts relating to the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) and the Woman's Relief Corps (WRC).
The GAR formed in Springfield in 1866 and was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Revenue Cutter Service who served in the Civil War. The WRC became the official auxiliary to the GAR in 1883 and was designed to assist the GAR, promote and help run Memorial Day (alongside the GAR), petition the federal government for nurses pensions, and promote patriotic education.
Today the WRC is dedicated to perpetuating the memory of the GAR, and the Museum is a result of that dedication.
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