Grand Army of the Republic in St. Louis
Many men in St. Louis served in the Civil War. While some served in the Confederacy, most were part of the Union Army. After the war, Union veterans formed a fraternal organization called the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). By 1890, the GAR had about 400,000 members and the veterans can be traced in the GAR annual reports and death rolls. St. Louis had about fifteen GAR posts, with approximately four hundred posts elsewhere in Missouri.
Civil War Pension Records
Original Civil War pension records are available at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. You can order the pension files online at the National Archives Military website.
Posts in St. Louis
Links on the Post Name are to the society’s index pages for that post
Links on the Meeting Hall are to Google Maps links to the location of the hall.
Links on the Post Namesake are links to Find A Grave for the namesake.
Development of the list is detailed below.
| No. | Post Name | Meeting Hall | Map | Post Namesake | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frank P. Blair 1905 Roster |
Masonic Hall 1708 Market St |
Map | MG Frank Preston Blair Jr. (1821–1875), famous Civil War leader from Missouri. | One of nine posts present when the Department of Missouri reorganized in 1882. |
| 2 | Gen Lyon 1889 Roster |
Wentzell Hall Eighth St & Franklin Ave |
Map | BG Nathaniel Lyon (1818–1861), KIA at Wilson’s Creek, Missouri, 10 August 1861. | One of nine posts present when the Department of Missouri reorganized in 1882. |
| 13 | Col Hassendeubel 1890 Roster |
South St. Louis Turner Hall 1523 S 10th St |
Map | COL Franz Hassendeubel (1817–1863), 17th Missouri Inf., died 17 July 1863 from wounds received in a grenade explosion at Vicksburg, Mississippi, on 28 June 1863. Buried in Bellefontaine Cem., St. Louis. | Post No. 13 was the primary home for German-speaking Union veterans in South St. Louis, including brewer William Lemp. |
| 107 | Harry P. Harding 1901 Roster |
North St. Louis Turner Hall N 14th St & Salisbury St |
Map | The post was named in honor of Henry (Harry) P. Harding (~1828–1863), a lieutenant in the 26th Missouri Infantry Volunteers. Before the war, Harding was a member of the St. Louis Grays, a prestigious local militia unit. He was killed in action during the Battle of Missionary Ridge in Tennessee on 25 November 1863 | |
| 131 | Ransom Members Index |
Armory Hall N 4th St & Washington Ave |
Map | BG Thomas Edward Greenfield Ransom (1834–1864), U.S. Volunteers, died of disease at Rome, Ga., on 29 Oct. 1864. | Gen. William T. Sherman was a charter member. |
| 152 | D. N. Keeler Members Index |
Kreienkamp General Store Allenton/Melrose |
Map | Named after PVT Daniel N. Keeler (1837–1874), Company C, 8th Missouri Volunteers, who died a pauper and was buried on the private grounds of Senator Allen. | |
| 193 | Julius P. Garesche Charter Members |
Old Town Saloon 7529 South Broadway |
Map | Named in honor of LTC Julius Peter Garesche (1821–1862), who died 31 Dec. 1862, at the Battle of Stones River | |
| 227 | Col Almsted | Unknown Approx |
Map | Named in honor of COL Henry Almstedt (1812–1884) | Post name Almsted in charter. Last name also spelled Almstedt, Almstaedt, Almstead |
| 233 | Thomas J. Brouster | Autenrieth Hotel northeast corner of Forsyth Blvd & Meramec Ave |
Map | Named in honor of PVT Thomas J. Brouster (1840–1862), Old Co A, 1st Regt. Missouri State Militia Infantry, injured in Battle of Pea Ridge, Ark., and died on 17 Nov 1862, in Springfield, Missouri hospital. He was the son of George Patterson Brouster. | |
| 301 | Cpt Charles Demny | Odd Fellows Hall 2726 Arsenal St |
Map | Named in honor of CPT Charles Demny (1835–1863), Co E, 12th Missouri Volunteer Infantry, who was killed in action near Vicksburg, May 1863 | Probate says body of Charles Demny transferred from Vicksburg to St. Louis |
| 304 | John A. Logan | Lindell Hotel northwest corner of 6th Street and Washington Avenue |
Map | MG John Alexander Logan (1826–1886), famous Civil War leader and helped lead the call for creation of Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, as a national public holiday. | |
| 343 | Col Shaw | Harrison Bros Paint Bldg southwest corner of 12th and Pine Streets |
Map | COL Robert Gould Shaw (1837–1863), 54th MA Infantry, KIA at Fort Wagner, S.C., 18 July 1863. Famous Civil War leader of colored troops. | Fifteen charter members. Noted as an African American GAR Post in The Won Cause (Gannon, 2011). |
| 444 | Elwood Miller | Post Hall N Newstead Ave & N Market St |
Map | The post was named in honor of CPT M. Elwood Miller (1843–1865), an officer in Company E of the 18th Missouri Volunteer Infantry | |
| 496 | Col Meumann | Small Hall at Concordia Park Jefferson Ave & Pestalozzi St |
Map | Theodore Meumann (1828–1887) was a key figure in the 3rd Missouri Infantry. He began the war as a captain and fought at the Battle of Wilson’s Creek. He eventually rose to the rank of colonel, leading the regiment through major Western Theater campaigns. | |
| HQ | Department of Missouri Commanders |
Temple Building 19 So. Broadway |
Map | Headquarters from 1880 to 1928 | |
| HQ | Department of Missouri MO Death Rolls Index |
Victoria Building 8th & Locust |
Map | Headquarters from 1928 to 1940 |
This list was developed using data from Missouri GAR Records and Missouri GAR Detailed Info, along with research using some subscription and some free sites: newspapers.com, Google AI studio, Fold 3, St. Louis County Watchman newspaper in Family Search Free Text Search, and Google Maps.
Last modified: 18-Feb-2026 20:24