Rutland County descendants of Union veterans to host 138th annual meeting in Rutland City, May 20 Sons of Union Veterans invites public to American Legion Post 31 By Joshua Ferguson RUTLAND CITY, VT - Rutland County's Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) is pleased to announce and is proud to host the annual meeting for the Department of Vermont on May 20, 2023 at American Legion Post 31 in Rutland City, Vermont. With registration at 9:30AM, the program begins at 10:00AM. All are welcome to attend. In his announcement, Department of Vermont Secretary Bruce Amsden stated SUVCW Commander in Chief Bruce Frail is scheduled to attend the 138th Department of Vermont Encampment program. The Rutland chapter is known as Ripley Camp No. 4, named in honor of the Ripley brothers of Rutland County, Vermont. The Rutland Historical Society states "[n]o Rutland family contributed to the town and to the war effort more than the Ripleys." The Ripley parents, William and Jane Betsy Ripley, played a significant wartime role in Rutland as employers and leaders of the Rutland County branch of the U.S. Sanitary Commission, and their three sons served as brothers in uniform. Edward H. Ripley, a Union Army officer, attained the rank of brevet brigadier general, notably leading the first troops into Richmond upon its surrender. William Y. W. Ripley served as a company commander in the 1st Vermont Regiment and in the 1st U. S. Sharpshooters, and he was awarded the Medal of Honor for bravery and leadership in the Battle of Malvern Hill. A third brother, Charles Ripley, also served in the 12th Vermont Infantry. Preceding the formation of Ripley Camp was Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Roberts Post No. 14 organized on November 11, 1868. GAR record books show the first post commander was brother William Y. W. Ripley, and the post was named after Colonel George T. Roberts, a Rutland resident who was killed at the Battle of Baton Rouge on August 5, 1862. In November 2022, Ripley Camp elected officers under Commander Daniel Celik, who in his second year has been instrumental in recruiting new members. Currently, there are 20 members in Ripley Camp, out of a total of 58 members in the Department of Vermont, which is composed of H.E.K. Hall Camp (Chelsea), William Scott Camp (Barre), George Jerrison Stannard Camp (Milton), and Ripley Camp (Rutland). Following tradition, the annual meeting takes the form of an Annual Encampment where new officers will be elected at the state level and a speaker will present on Civil War history and Vermont's role in Union efforts to secure victory and advance freedom. SUVCW is a fraternal organization dedicated to preserving the history and legacy of veteran heroes who fought and worked to save the Union in the American Civil War. Organized in 1881 and chartered by Congress in 1954, SUVCW is the legal heir and successor to the Grand Army of the Republic. The final Encampment of the GAR was held in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1949 and the last member, Albert Woolson, died in 1956 at the age of 109 years. Today, the last known living son of a Civil War veteran is William Pool, 98, of Bolivar, Missouri. To learn more and to join Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, visit suvcw.org. | 
