Vern Barker, Civil War researcher and member of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) Camp 56 will be the guest speaker at the Grant County Historical Society’s Annual Meeting to be held Saturday, April 20^th. 

The SUVCW grew out of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), a fraternal organization of Civil War veterans.  Mr. Barker will be speaking on the SUVCW and various projects the SUVCW is undertaking, including locating the final resting place of Union Civil War veterans, placing headstones where there are none, and conducting a ceremony at the gravesite of the last Union Civil War Veteran to die in each county.  Last summer Gary Carlberg, Commander of SUVCW Camp 56  was at Union Cemetery in Elbow Lake to conduct a ceremony at the grave of Grant County’s last Union Veteran, John H. Parson.  (For more on John H. Parson, see the article “Last Man Standing,” written by Don McCollor, that appears on our website, gchsmn.org, - follow the Veterans Memorial Hall link).  Mr. Barker will also be available for “on the spot” research on Civil War soldiers that attendees might request during our meeting.  Over 11,000 Union Civil War soldiers are buried in Minnesota according to the National Database and other sources.  The GCHS annual meeting is open to the public.  You do not need to be a member to attend.  We especially invite members of the American Legion or anyone with an ancestor who fought in the Civil War to attend to learn more about the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.