Friday at Auction Finds is readers’ questions day. I try to guide readers to resources to help them determine the value of their items. I’m not able to appraise their treasures, but I can do some preliminary research to get them started. So, where values are noted, these are market values based on prices I find on the web, not appraisal for insurance purposes that I suggest for items that have been determined to be of great value.
Today’s question is about where to place a G.A.R. grave marker that was displaced during a tornado.
Question:
I work at the Lakeview Cemetery in Windsor, Colorado, and found a box of American Legion markers and one GAR marker mixed in. So here I am researching what it stands for so I can figure out where in our cemetery it belongs. How can I find out who it belongs to so I can place it back onto the grave where it belongs?
I have asked my contacts at our Town Hall and no one seems to have the time or will to help me get the marker where it belongs. Apparently in 2008 after a tornado hit our cemetery, all the markers were gathered up and placed in a cardboard box and placed on a shelf. I started work as the caretaker in 2009, and placed the American Legion markers as best I could on graves with military stones but never knew what to do with this GAR marker that was given back to me from our Town Hall after the person who had it on her desk left it when she started a new job elsewhere.
Can you help me find a name or location in our cemetery so I can return it to its designated grave? Again, our cemetery name is Lakeview Cemetery in Windsor, Colorado, 80550 .
Answer:
I love a good mystery and a challenge, and this reader provided one. He had sought my advice after reading a blog post I wrote last year about the sale of G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic) markers at a flea market. The markers were affixed to graves of Union veterans of the Civil War in cemeteries across the country by members of the organization. The markers seemed to have been sold by a company called Balch Bros. & West Co. of Syracuse, NY.
The G.A.R. was founded in 1866 in Decatur, IL, and its membership was open to veterans who had been honorably discharged from the Union Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Revenue Cutter Service, which later became part of the Coast Guard. Veterans had to have been in the military from April 12, 1861 to April 9, 1865.
The “official body” of the organization was its annual encampment, which included camping, formal dinners and memorial events held over several days. The last one was held in 1949, according to the G.A.R. website, and the last member died in 1956.
The organization still survives through the Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War.
I wasn’t sure how I could help the reader since I had very little to go on and it would take a lot of research to find out whose grave the marker was originally placed on. I asked if there were any markings on the marker, because one of the markers at the flea market had the name of a G.A.R. post embossed on it. He sent me a photo but it contained only the boilerplate writing that I had seen on the other marker at the flea market.
But I started researching to see what I could find. The Windsor area was hit by a mile-wide tornado in May 2008 that left one person dead and major destruction in several towns in Weld County, according to CNN.
After some preliminary search of Civil War graves in Windsor, here are my suggestions for finding a headstone of a Civil War veteran at Lakeview. It may not be the original grave but at least it will be on the grave of someone who served.
First, check the burial records for the cemetery. They are on a Lakeview Cemetery page on the Windsor government website and on a site called Find A Grave. The government website indicated whether or not the person was a veteran and the war served in, if the info was available. I saw several notations indicating those who were Civil War vets. The list also gave the location of the burial plot. You may also have to go through the list to check birthdates to guess at who else might have served.
From the list, you should be able to find a Civil War veteran on whose grave you can place the marker. I don’t think the original owner will mind.
If you want to be more precise and find the rightful owner, that will take some work. The markers may have been placed on the grave by a local G.A.R. post. I found an R.B. Hayes Post #90 in New Windsor, Weld County, which may have provided them. I doubt if the post is still in operation. I also found a photo of an upright sandstone memorial for the post.
Also, there were two posts in nearby Larimer County and six in Weld County whose records – if they are still around – could be a source.
Here’s a page of links on the Denver Library website to a list of the G.A.R. posts in Laramie and Weld, along with names of soldiers from Colorado who served. The list also contained posts in Denver. This library appears to be a good resource and you may want to contact the librarians for help.
Another resources is the Sons of Union Veterans website, which has a National Grave Registration Project that seeks to identify graves and place the names in a national database. Contact the organization to see if it might be able to help identify a grave in Lakeview where you can place the marker.
The Grand Army of the Republic Museum and Library is in Philadelphia, but it has few records regarding the individual posts.
I’m not sure how big the cemetery is or how the graves are arranged. If the older graves are in one place, it’s very easy to just check headstones, which you seem to already be doing. If the graves are spread out, you can divide the cemetery in quadrants and walk it, looking at headstones.
The reader also mentioned in an email that he had found a headstone in the cemetery with a G.A.R. marker and the name Kelso on it, and was going to try to track it down. Checking the Find A Grave site, I found an entry and photo at Lakeview of a William Kelso whose headstone had a G.A.R. marker propped against it. This might be the person he’s referring to.
Reply from reader:
Thank you very much. I really appreciate your help.
