GAR improvements planned as second annual Civil War commemoration plans unfold

LYNN – Grand Army of the Republic building curators are planning $180,000 in renovation work to the Andrew Street Civil War museum even as they prepare for ceremonies marking the 150th anniversary of the war.May 28 through June 2 will feature local commemoration activities, including Civil War education events spread throughout local schools, and a June 1 and 2 Lynn Common encampment staged by Civil War reenactors.Civil War Roundtables of the North Shore President Dexter Bishop called the nearly week-long commemorations a way to remember Lynn’s role in the war and the significant Civil War events of 1863.View photos of GAR HallHe said 2,200 local students participated in last year’s commemoration events.”The weather dampened spirits last year, but we still reached out to school kids. This year, we’re highlighting veterans of the Civil War with families still in Lynn,” Bishop said.With its 19th century top-floor meeting hall and lower floors displaying Civil War and Spanish-American War artifacts, the Grand Army of the Republic building is owned by the city and overseen by Curator Robert Matthias, who conducts school tours, including one held a week ago to mark Student Government Day.Matthias said $150,000 approved by the City Council and Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy will pay for exterior work, including masonry facade and window trim repairs. The work will be done during the late summer on the heels of floor tile work planned in four of the building’s display rooms.”The bricks are in tough shape and the wood work needs to be done,” he said.Matthias said $25,000 in state tax dollars will pay for the tiling with the city contributing about $5,000 to the project. The tiling will be done in the week following commemoration events.Matthias and Bishop said the GAR building is one of the last remaining halls in the United States founded and run by Union veterans. Bishop credited the movie “Lincoln” with helping to renew interest in the Civil War. He said scholars and students frequently conduct research in the GAR building.”If we don’t know our history, we’re bound to make some mistakes again,” he said.Thor Jourgensen can be reached at [email protected].