GAR cap

[major bill]

Very slow day today at the Michigan History Museum so I looked over some of the displays to see what I thought of the item on display. These are a couple of GAR items I found interesting the GAR medal is very fancy. I am posting theses just to share. There are so many of these GAR medals. The cap appears to be quartered (gold lace dividing it into quarters) but seems to have no lace up the front. Also many GAR caps had numbers on the front. I might have to see what I have from the museum about the cap.



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[Patrick H]

It'll be interesting to find out what you can tell us about these.

 

[major bill]

I mostly work as a docent on the other end of the 2nd floor of the Michigan History Museum so have not studied the items in this gallery in depth. They are in a plastic display case on the side of a huge gallery filled with many other artifacts. In the big picture the GAR plays a small part in this gallery so I have never focused on the item in the GAR display case.

 

[Package4]

The Horse Soldier in Gettysburg, had a very similar cap that they were trying to sell as war date, but I had very strong doubts about it, glad you posted this. I think it a very early GAR piece, before the 1872 caps were the go to headgear for the GAR. You can tell it is not a war date cap by the thickness of the brim, if I am seeing it correctly, it appears to be a single piece embossed leather, brim. The chinstrap is post war as well, but I have seen war date pieces with replaced chinstraps of the same gold braid and slide knot, so that is not necessarily a dating factor.

Would love to see the interior of the cap.......

 

[mofederal]

I like the GAR items, but I know little about many of the uniform objects. Thanks @major bill for the thread. I am hoping to learn more.

 

[major bill]

We have a GAR museum in a local town. There is just so many GAR items.

 

[Championhilz]

Do you have any artifacts from Custer Post #5 of the G.A.R. in Grand Rapids? My G-G Uncle belonged to that post.

 

[major bill]

I do not have any GAR artifacts my self. We do have a local GAR museum but not sure exactly what they have.

 

[Solomon]

We have a GAR museum in a local town.

Always looking to ad things to my "when I visit ___ one day" list - do you know the name of the musem, @major bill? Good thread - thanks for sharing!

 

[major bill]

Always looking to ad things to my "when I visit ___ one day" list - do you know the name of the musem, @major bill? Good thread - thanks for sharing!

Michigan's Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall & Museum located in downtown Eaton Rapids, Michigan. Look them up on line for hours. I think they are open the first and second Wednesday of each month. As a small private museum they are often open for school groups or on some weekends, all at the whim of the owner and docents who work there. So if I were you I would make sure it is open and what hours before I visited. I work at the Michigan History Museum with one of the docents and he is very approachable.

 

[Solomon]

Fantastic - def appreciate all the info Bill!!

 

[Badgercwcollector]

Hi Bill , If you ever have a slow day again I would love to see some 24 Mich. Iron Brigade items .