opened in 1900 as a club-house for Civil War veter-ans and was a city recrea-tion center by the time it closed in 1982. Renovation plans call for one or two ground-floor restaurants as well as office

space and a memorial for Civil War veterans. The project will also receive a $876,584 tax abatement from the city and the state and $584,000 in federal historic structure tax cred-its. The Michigan Economic Development Corp. calcu-lates the G.A.R. project’s total capital investment at $4.4 million.

The Detroit Free Press ran the following story in the August 8, 2013 edition - The owners of the 113-year-old sandstone castle build-ing near the edge of down-town Detroit are set to re-ceive some state assistance

for their ambitious renova-tion. The Michigan Economic Development Corp. an-

nounced this week that a $660,000 grant has been approved for the Grand Army of the Republic build-ing at the corner of Grand River and Cass. These funds will come from the Michigan Community Revi-talization Program.

The G.A.R. building is owned by brothers Tom Carleton and David Car-leton and business partner

Sean Em-ery. The men are in the process of renovat-ing the dis-tinctive and architectur-ally unique structure, which

THE DETROIT G.A.R. MEMORIAL BUILDING

NOTICE: FALL MEETING

Our last meeting of 2013 has been scheduled for 12 PM on Saturday, October 12 at Jacoby’s German Biergarten in Detroit. The restaurant is located at 624 Brush St., between E. Fort and E. Congress Streets. I am working on a special presentation for that same day. Details to be announced.

MILITARY ORDER OF THE LOYAL LEGION OF THE UNITED STATES

COMMANDERY OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN

SEPTEMBER 2013 VOLUME IV, ISSUE 2

THE M ISSIVE

SPECIAL POINTS OF IN-

TEREST:

Perpetuate the memory and

ideals of the 16th President Abraham Lincoln

Officers in the Union Army in the Civil War

Patriotism & the Flag

Americanism & Education

Partnership with the Sons of

Union Veterans of the Civil War

Honor all veterans

Recognize ROTC cadets &

Midshipmen

150th Anniversary of the Civil War

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

GRAND RAPIDS MONUMENT PARK

2

MAJOR GENERAL BYRON R. PIERCE

3

CAPTAIN CHARLES W. WATKINS

4

MEMORIAL BENCH & GETTYSBURG

5

MORE ABOUT THE DEROIT G.A.R BLDG

6

NOTES FROM

MEETING 6.30.2012

7

COMMANDERY

OFFICERS

7

DETROIT G.A.R.

BUILDING CONT.

7

FUTURE EVENTS &

PROJECTS

8

MONUMENT PARK IN GRAND RAPIDS OF HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE

Originally known simp-

ly as “Triangular Park,” it was the first public park in Grand Rapids;

est. in 1843.

Named Monument Park on November 25,

1884 in anticipation of the installation of the Kent County Civil War

monument.

The monument was the first piece of public art

in Grand Rapids and

the first war memorial

It was the first Civil

War monument in the United States to include

a fountain.

It was the first Civil

War monument to rec-ognize the efforts of

women.

Two of the dignitaries that dedicated the mon-ument on September

17, 1885 were Com-panions in the Michigan Commandery of the

MOLLUS.

The monument was moved in 1977 80’ to

the north in a new con-

figuration of the park.

The park is undergoing

a major rehabilitation and the monument will be moved to the middle

of the triangular park and be elevated to a greater place of promi-

nence.

The drawing below is what Monument Park will look like when completed. Here a few images of the initial construction. The BLUE star marks the original location (in what is the street today) and the RED star the current location.

Pierce was wounded five times during the war. He reportedly lost a leg at Get-tysburg but that was untrue. Gen Pierce has served two years as Department Com-mander of the Grand Army of the Republic of Michi-gan, and also as Senior Vice-Commander of the Loyal Legion, Department of Michigan; he is also a mas-ter Mason and an Odd Fel-low; in politics he is an ac-tive and influential republi-can, and in religion is a Uni-versalist; Mrs. Pierce, a lady of refined tastes and many accomplishments, is an Episcopalian, and has been a faithful and valued helpmate to her husband in much of his varied career. From 1887 (the date of its opening), Gen. Pierce was Commandant of the Michi-gan Soldiers’ Home (in Grand Rapids) until 1891, when a change was made in the administration through the mutations of the politics of the state government. Pierce died a widower of myocarditis at 1:00 p.m. on July 10, 1924.

Maj. Gen. Byron R. Pierce

Maj.-Gen. Byron Root Pierce, editor of the chapter on "Military Affairs in Michigan", was born at East Bloomfield, Ontario Coun-ty, N. Y., Sept. 20, 1829, a son of Silas and Mary (Root) Pierce. He was educated at an academy in Rochester, N. Y., and began his busi-ness career in his father's woolen mills. After a few years of this life he studied dentistry and in 1856 locat-ed at Grand Rapids, Mich., where he opened an office for the practice of his pro-fession, at the same time conducting a branch office at Joliet, Ill. On May 13, 1861, he entered the Union army as Captain of Co. K, 3d Mich. Volunteer Infan-try.

Promotions

June 10, 1861 Captain, 3rd MI Inf.

October 28, 1861 Major, 3rd MI Inf.

July 25, 1862

Lt Colonel, 3rd MI Inf.

January 1, 1863 Colonel, 3rd MI Inf.

June 7, 1864 Brig-General

April 6, 1865

Major-General, Brevet

Commands Army of the Potomac

December 30, 1863/

January 1, 1864 3rd Brigade, 1st Division,

3rd Corps

June 23, 1864/ June 29, 1864

2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, 2nd Corps

June 3, 1864/ June 22, 1864

1st Brigade, 2nd Division, 2nd Corps

June 24, 1864/ July 22, 1864

2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, 2nd Corps

August 26, 1864/ January 25, 1865

2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, 2nd Corps

February 15, 1865/

June 28, 1865 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division,

2nd Corps

THE MICHIGAN COMMANDERY AND MONUMENT PARK The G.A.R. Dedication by

Byron Pierce

“In the name of my com-rades in the Grand Army of the Republic, represent-ing as they do all soldiers and sailors who defended the integrity and authority of the Nation, I thank you, and those whom you repre-sent for this memorial shaft. Its very silence is impres-sive. Without articulate speech, it is eloquent. It needs no words. It is itself an oration. It assures us that our dead are held in remembrance – those dead who gave their lives for the security of the citizens and the union of the States. It is significant of brave and loyal obedience to the command of the Nation always and everywhere, since the obligations of citi-zenship are not restricted to time or place, or to the conflict of arms. It gives encouragement for the fu-ture, since the recognition and approval it gives of patriotic fidelity and hero-ism will be an incentive for the display of public valor and virtue in all coming time. There can be no doubt that the honor you pay to the patriot dead and to their memorable deeds, will serve not only to make American citizens in these days more reputa-ble, but also to maintain and perpetuate through all the future generations of the union and authority of the United States of Ameri-

ca.”

weary marches; the fallen com-rades; the horrors of Anderson-ville and Libby Prison; aye! The battlefields of Bull Run, Gettysburg, Lookout Mountain, Chancellorsville, Stone River, and Appomattox, where the Nation’s destiny was carved out and where they were in the fore front of the fray. All these rise before us, each with its multi-tude of reasons why this testi-monial to their value, this tribute to their work, this mon-ument, should be dedicated to their memory. “…Most nations erect monu-ments to their great leaders; but today in this memorial we rec-ognize no one above the other, and in ages hence, when every person here has been laid in his final resting place, the stranger within the city’s gates, or the prattling child, as they pass by, may ask, Whose monument is that? And the response will be – That monument is erected in honor of the soldiers of Kent County, whose valor made it possible for us to live today in this beautiful, peaceful and prosperous city, under the stars and stripes, fitting emblem of a Union of States and a Nation’s authority. “Not alone, however, to the soldiers who fought battles is the country indebted for victo-ry. They who at home by voice, vote and act sustained the Gov-ernment, cared for the loved ones, caused steps to be taken which culminate today in the dedication of this splendid monument – the men whose gratitude is splendidly typified in the fountain symbol, the true

Captain Charles W. Watkins

Charles Watkins was born in East Salem, NY, March 5, 1844. He received an academical education. In 1856 removed to Leigh-ton, Mich. He entered the 6th Michigan Cavalry as a Private in 1861; was trans-ferred to the 10th Michigan Cavalry in 1863. Watkins was commissioned as Lieu-tenant; served as Adjutant of the regiment for a brief period, and was made a Captain by brevet "for gallantry in action at Abbott Creek, NC and for merito-rious conduct during the raid of Gen. Stoneman's Cavalry in the spring of 1865." He followed the mercantile business in Allegan county and was a representative from Allegan county in 1871-1873. Watkins later moved to Grand Rapids, where he engaged in the insurance business. In poli-tics he was a Republican. Watkins served as Vice-President of the Peninsular Trust Company of Grand Rapids and was Collector of Internal Revenue for two and a half years under Presi-dent Arthur. He died suddenly of heart disease on March 19, 1906 while aboard the S.S. Tagus and was buried at sea the same day. A memorial stone exists in the Oakhill

Cemetery in Grand Rapids. Perhaps his greatest post-war achievement were the words he spoke at the dedi-cation of the Kent County Civil War Monument on September 17, 1885. Some of his words - “…Michigan stood in the front rank of loyal States, and nowhere within her boundaries was found a more earnest, de-termined, and patriotic citizen-ship than in the County of Kent. This monument, which is today presented to the Grand Army of the Republic, is a testi-monial to the value and worth of the brave men who responded to their country’s call for aid and died that the Nation might live. “Kent County sent to the war 4,214 of her truest and best sons to battle for National unity, constitutional liberty and the old flag. On every prominent battlefield, the his-tory of Kent County’s sons is written in their own blood. “Oh! the sacrifices made; the

THE MICHIGAN COMMANDERY AND MONUMENT PARK

sentiment of which is that so long as grass grows and water runs, the deeds of the soldiers will be kept fresh and green in the hearts of the people. These men I say were heroes and de-serve their full meed of praise. And the women in camp, in hospital and home, their pray-ers, their love and tender care helped to win victories, the world has yet to produce more heroic care than they. “This monument is erected in honor of the soldiers of Kent County, living, and dead who have gone to their reward; but to those living it has a double significance. It stands for a Union restored, a people pros-perous, united, happy slavery dead, the equality of all men before the law, a Government of the people, and a just apprecia-tion of the services that made all these possible. “The soldier dies; this monu-ment and this Government will go on for ages, new generations come, old generations pass away; the fruits of the civil war are permanent and lasting; the victory of the sixties will be the crowning blessing of the twenti-eth century; it drenched the land in blood and cost us dearly in treasure. We have our re-ward in bequeathing to coming generations a Union of States firmly established upon the undying principles of free homes, free schools, free speech, and free ballots – the grandest and best Government under the sun.”

Oh vanguard of freedom, a silent salute, Let love be our language, for words they are mute, While o’er you the emblem, you perished to save, The star spangled banner forev-er shall wave.

The fourth item, a granite bench, was dedicated in September, 1935, in near-by Fulton Park, today Vet-erans Memorial Park, by the National Auxiliary to the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, was added in 1977.

Fast forward to 2013! While Michigan Command-ery Companions Pierce and Watkins helped dedicate the monument, there was never any official recognition of the MOLLUS until now. Through an anonymous donation by a Michigan Companion, a new $1,700 granite memorial bench will be placed in the rehabilitat-ed park opposite the 1935 bench. A photo of G.A.R. memori-al bench and a drawing of what the new MOLLUS bench will look like are to the right. Captain Watkins’ inspiring words will serve as a per-manent reminder to all. It should be noted that in the thirteen years previous

Over the years, other trib-utes and commemorations of the Civil War and the G.A.R. found a home in Monument Park. The second item to be placed in the park was a flag pole (removed as of 1977).

April 6, 1921 An article from the Grand Rapids Press titled, “G.A.R. Plans to Put Flagstaff in Monu-ment Square” Watson and Custer Posts, GAR and Sons of Veterans have appointed committees to solicit funds for the erec-tion of a flagstaff in Monu-ment Square. The staff will be of steel and 67 feet high and is estimated to cost $400 or $500.

April 19, 1921 The Herald carried the fol-

lowing story titled, “Old Glory’s Army Grows As Scores Give Dollars” From the Michigan Soldiers’ Home yesterday came a crisp one-dollar bill from Sgt. Spooner, a veter-an of the Rebellion who is

worried lest the younger generation of Grand Rapids to whom the Civil War is only history, will fail the G.A.R. in competition of its program for regeneration of sacred Monument Park. …Contributions should be made to the cashier of the Herald. (A list of support-ers included $84.50 raised in one day with $1 and $2 contributions, bringing the total to $241 in just three days.)

April 20, 1921 The Herald continued the next day with a story titled, “It Didn’t Take Grand Rapids So Long - GAR Fund Over-Subscribed” On next Memorial Day, Old Glory will float high over Monument Park; and there Old Glory will remain – atop a 67-foot staff of steel – for all of the Memo-rial Days to come, an ocular display of Grand Rapids’ homage to those blue-clad fighting men who fought to preserve the Union, and a continuous consecration of community patriotism.

June 6, 1923 A third item, a bronze tab-let on a small boulder, was dedicated by the Depart-ment of Michigan, Wom-an’s Relief Corps. The tablet read - This tablet erected by the De-partment of Michigan Woman’s Relief Corps - In memory of, and dedicated to the Veterans of the Civil War.

MONUMENT PARK TODAY

to putting together this is-sue of the newsletter, I had used two sources that indi-cated Charles Watkins was a Major in the war. Guess what? Watkins’ highest rank was Captain. The bench text will reflect that.

Here’s a story of a castle, a great army and a great preser-vation battle. While Dan Gilbert is getting a lot of ink for all of the build-ings he is scooping up (he now owns or controls 7.6 million square feet of office space and 30 buildings), a quirky little castle has quietly been undergoing a renovation of its own. And while the Grand Army of the Republic Building is about as far from a skyscraper as you can get, saving this quirky little sandstone castle is no less important than its big abandoned brethren. In fact, this is one of the most im-portant rehab projects the city has seen in recent years — because it proves that you don’t have to be a kazillion-aire to save a piece of De-troit’s history. For more than 100 years, the Grand Army of the Republic Building has stood its ground on the corner of Grand River and Cass. And for nearly a decade, brothers Tom Car-leton and David Carleton and business partner Sean Emery — the leaders behind the creative media company Mindfield — wrestled with the City of Detroit to save it from the architectural scrap heap. The GAR Building opened in 1900 as something of a frat house for the city’s Civil War veterans.

While there probably weren’t many keggers in those days, the old-timers would often gather to play cards and so-cialize, likely regaling each other with tales from their days on the front line, fighting to keep our country whole. After the ol’ Boys in Blue had mostly died off, the city took control of the GAR Building in 1934 and threw a division of Detroit’s Welfare Depart-ment in the building. In the early 1940s, the city’s Parks and Recreation Depart-ment turned the GAR Build-ing into a rec center and meeting hall for groups like Alcoholics Anonymous and after-school dance troupes. But as Detroit started to bleed jobs and population, Mayor Coleman Young shut-tered the GAR Recreation Center in 1982. While a shame, the move made sense: People did not live down-town; the rec centers were needed in the neighborhoods. For nearly three decades, vandals, urban explorers and thrill-seekers would storm the castle. Some taking only photos, others raiding the castle for artifacts and wiring. In 2006, the City of Detroit sent out a request for pro-posals to develop the GAR. The city went with a known commodity: the Ilitch fami-ly’s Olympia Development. Meanwhile, the Carletons were no stranger to saving Detroit buildings. In 1992, they bought the old Good Housekeeping Building on Library near Gratiot, and

turned it into the Library Lofts. After sitting on the GAR for a few years, the city rescinded the sale to the Ilitch family — a case of “develop or get off the pot,” if you will. The Carletons were waiting. The partners wanted the GAR so badly, they bought it site practically unseen. At the time, with all the windows boarded up and without any electricity, they had to make their decision with only flash-lights and optimism to guide them. Navigating the rotted floors and mounds of pigeon drop-pings in the dark, the Mind-field team still decided they had a winner. On Nov. 1, 2011, the Carleton brothers and Emery bought the GAR from the city for $220,000. “How could you not want to take what’s already in this city, surrounding us every day, and breathe some life into it?” said Emery, Mind-field’s post director. It’s worth pointing out that this is a Detroit-based small business saving one of the city’s architectural treasures, not a major real estate devel-oper or major hotel chain or billionaire’s business. That’s not to discount the rebirths of the Book-Cadillac and Fort Shelby hotels or the Broder-ick Tower, but this is a little guy dreaming big and doing his part to turn our city

MORE ABOUT DETROIT G.A.R. MEMORIAL BUILDING

PAGE 6 THE M ISSIVE

around. “For anyone else who wants to try, now’s the time to do this in this city,” Emery said. “There’s an incredible private-sector, do-it-yourself men-tality that’s more or less erupting in Detroit right now. ... When you look around the city and see these businesses taking the chance and succeeding, it is literally infectious. The opportunity to make a difference, grow and build something worth-while is greater in this city than it has been in decades and is probably unique in the country. Get out there and do it.” The Carletons and Emery plan to relocate Mindfield to the top floor of the GAR next spring. The second and third floors will be leased as office space, and the ground floor will house two restaurants. The team also plans to honor the building’s past by dedicat-ing space as a memorial to Civil War veterans; likewise, a mosaic-tiled floor honoring the Grand Army will be pre-served. Compared with most restora-tions and renovations of his-toric Detroit buildings, Mind-field’s work on the GAR goes above and beyond to save what’s left. While the Book-Cadillac and Fort Shelby hotel renovations were crucial to Detroit’s turnaround, much of their past was carted off to the landfill.

Companions Keith Harri-son, Paul Davis, Walter F. Roberts and Bruce Butgereit met in Lansing at Clara’s Sta-tion, a restored train depot turned into a restaurant. We were joined by DOLLUS member Marcia Butgereit. Conversation over lunch was about past and future events. Given the small attend-ance, it was decided to keep the same slate of officers for

2013-2014. One issue that was dis-cussed was the difficulty in getting Companions to sub-mit their annual dues in a timely manner. It was sug-gested that the dues notice be sent out in the form of an invoice so as to add some importance or urgency to the process. In early December, the Treas-urer will send out invoices for your 2014 dues.

Some discussion included our continued role in the Civil War Sesquicentennial.

Carleton said, so they were replicated from white oak. Even the original hardware for the doors is being repro-duced. “In many ways, restoring this building transcends a labor of love. It’s so important in rev-

erence, to the men it was to honor, so important to our history,” said David Carleton, Mindfield’s executive produc-

So far, Mindfield has already sunk $1 million into the fa-çade, remediation and clean-up of the building. The partners are going to painstaking lengths to restore as much of the building as they can, and what cannot be

restored is being re-created. The original front doors, for example, were “beat to hell” and could not be saved, David

NOTES FROM JUNE MEETING - 6.1 .2013

PAGE 6 STORY CONTINUED

COMMANDERY OFFICERS FOR 2013-2014

Recorder/Treasurer - Bruce Butgereit, II Registrar - Keith G. Harrison Chancellor - Charles A. DuCharme

Council - Colin B. Butgereit Kim D. Shaw Thomas E. Singelyn

Officers appointed were: Chaplain - Jon Reed ROTC Officer - W. Fred Roberts

Elections were held and the following Companions were elected: Commander - Bruce B. Butgereit Senior Vice-Commander - Paul T. Davis

Junior Vice-Commander - Adam Gaines

PAGE 6 VOLUME IV, ISSUE 2

er. “To do anything less than 100% would have been disre-spectful to the building, to the men who kept this coun-try together in the 1860s, who spent their dying days here.” You might say that saving the old home of the Grand Army

was a battle worth waging. Now we just have to enlist a few more preservation sol-diers. - Dan Austin/DFP

Bruce B. Butgereit, Commander

1691 Summerfield St. SE Grand Rapids, MI 49508

COMMANDERY OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN

Saturday, October 11 in De-troit Events -

Civil War

Sesquicentennial

Cemetery Tour: September 14, 2013 Saturday The third and final tour of a cemetery in Oakfield Town-ship. As done in 2011 and 2012 in White Swan and Oakfield cemeteries, we will commemo-rate the servicer and sacrifice of soldiers buried in Horton Cem-etery.

Annual Congress: October 17-20, 2013 Thursday-Saturday To be held at Lincoln Memorial

Meetings in 2014 - Our by-laws state we must conduct at least one meeting per year. Clearly, we all live busy lives and other obliga-tions can cause us to miss a meeting. If we keep the loose meeting schedule we’ve had in the past, we would meet some-time in February, June, and in October. I’d like some feedback on these dates - Saturday, February 22 in Warren, MI Saturday, June 14 in Detroit

University in Harrogate, TN. More information is available on the MOLLUS website.

Michigan

at Gettysburg: November 23, 2013 Saturday The Michigan Civil War Sesqui-centennial History Partners will conduct a special commemora-tion of Michigan’s role at Get-tysburg, the monuments there and the men who are buried in the national cemetery.

FUTURE MEETINGS & EVENTS Other upcoming events include -

Homecoming

1863

A Civil War

Christmas: December 7, 2013 Saturday A commemoration of the return to West Michigan by the Third Michigan Infantry on furlough in December 1863. Infor-mation on Christmas cus-toms of the period will be shared at the Lowell His-torical Museum, Lowell, MI.