In a message dated 08/26/2003 10:40:18 AM Eastern Daylight Time, Mfsaggese@aol.com writes: > I have the oppurtunity to purchase a rectangular belt buckle which has > GAR > {overlapping letters} in the middle of the buckle and the four branches of > the military symbols in each corner {crossed sabers, cannon, rifles, anchor} > the > letters and symbols are all raised off the surface...does anyone recognize > this as civil war era ? Here is some information on GAR. Where did you purchase the buckle, if I may ask, and does it look old? Dreama In 1866, Union Veterans of the Civil War organized into the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) and became a social and political force that would control the destiny of the nation for more than six decades. Membership in the veterans' organization was restricted to individuals who had served in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, or Revenue Cutter Service during the Civil War, thereby limiting the life span of the GAR. The GAR existed until 1956. In 1881 the GAR formed the Sons of Veterans of the United States of America (SV) to carry on its traditions and memory long after the GAR had ceased to exist. Membership was open to any man who could prove ancestry to a member of the GAR or to a veteran eligible for membership in the GAR. In later years, men who did not have the ancestry to qualify for hereditary membership, but who demonstrated a genuine interest in the Civil War and could subscribe to the purpose and objectives of the SUVCW, were admitted as Associates. This practice continues today.