Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War of Beaufort, SC

05/18/2026

02/18/2026

Ed Allen and Grand Army Hall of the Republic

Among the many buildings in Beaufort of significance to the African-American community – both past and present – the Grand Army of the Republic Hall on Newcastle Street stands out for the history made within its walls and its role today.

The Grand Army of the Republic began in Beaufort in 1888, one of many Union Army fraternal organizations under that name that formed across the United States in the wake of the Civil War. Post No. 9, in Beaufort, was named after Gen. David Hunter, a Union general who commanded Union troops in the South. Hunter organized the core of the 1st South Carolina Volunteers (Colored) in 1862, and he recruited men who had just been freed by the Emancipation Proclamation.

When Post No. 9 was founded, its purpose was to help Black Civil War veterans, widows, and orphans, said Ed Allen, a member of the Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War, a Grand Army Hall successor based in the building. It’s particularly significant to the Beaufort man because his great-great grandfather, who was born into slavery, was a member of the 1st South Carolina Volunteers. Among its many prominent early members was Robert Smalls, who put his stamp on so much of Beaufort’s history.

The Grand Army Hall that stands today was built in 1896. “It was a meeting place, so that the Black veterans could have a place to get together,” Allen said. “It is the only building left in South Carolina that’s connected to the Grand Army of the Republic.
“Over the years it has been used as a place to meet, a church, a day care center. When I was a child, there were dances here. Boy Scout troops were formed here,” Allen said.

The big event every year for Post No. 9 was Decoration Day – or Memorial Day as we now call it – Allen said. “The parade originated from this building and went along Prince to Carteret to Bay to Bladen and then to the National Cemetery,” where people would lay wreaths on the graves of soldiers and veterans.

Today, the building houses the Sons of the Union Veterans, the Daughters of the Union Veterans of the Civil War, and the Women’s Relief Corps, whose original members offered aid to Union troops. It is also a mini-museum, where you can see historic artifacts as well as many photos of African-American veterans who lived or live in Beaufort. One set of pictures pays tribute to those men who lost their lives during the Vietnam War.

Ed Allen is well-known throughout Beaufort County and the region, having been Beaufort County Coroner from 2008 to 2020, and serving for 27 years before that as deputy county coroner. He also served – from 1974 to 2007 – as the first director of Beaufort County Emergency Services (while deputy county coroner!). In fact, he was the first Black EMS director in South Carolina.

He is chairman of the board of the Beaufort-Jasper-Hampton Comprehensive Health Services. He’s been active in the Salvation Army, the Charles Lind Brown Advisory Committee, and is a member of the Sons of Beaufort Masonic Lodge #36. He is a licensed funeral director and embalmer and earned his degree at the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science.

But as busy as he is – even in retirement – he still finds time to seek out the graves of Black veterans of the Civil War who were not buried in the National Cemetery, but instead are interred in their family plots on St. Helena Island, Hilton Head Island, Bluffton, and other communities.

Their simple gravestones are marked not by birthdate and day of death, but by their name and a number, signifying the regiment they served with. One such headstone is that of Jacob Parker in the Warsaw Cemetery on St. Helena Island. It says 33 US – the 33rd US. Regiment, U.S. Colored Infantry.

“Quite often people will visit other places to look at history. They don’t know what exists in their own community,” Allen said, “and what your ancestors have contributed to preserving life, liberty, and justice. We take those things for granted.”

With his commitment to his community, Allen is living out his belief: “You have to give back to the community that raised you.”

11/11/2025

Today we pause to honor all who have served our nation in uniform. The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War, and Woman’s Relief Corps proudly remember the courage and dedication of every veteran, past and present, who has defended our freedoms.

11/05/2025

📣 Call for Volunteers - Help Honor Local Veterans!

Volunteers need to help read the names of local USCT veterans during our upcoming Veteran's Day Reading of the Names Tuesday, Nov 11 at Noon in Beaufort, SC. Volunteers will be responsible for reading 30-40 names and can leave after completing their list. List of names will be emailed ahead of time.

Register Here: https://forms.gle/SGKt6GnDNJQM6TEr9

If you are an organization interested in registering several readers, you can register here: https://forms.gle/fZE153kgkr7BmbFA9

For additional information email [email protected]. See less

10/23/2025

📣 We are honored to adopt the 1st SC Volunteers of African Descent/33rd US Color Troops and join in the national Veterans Day Reading of the Names organized by the The African American Civil War Memorial and Museum in Washington, DC, and co-hosted locally with Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War of Beaufort, SC Edward Wallace Camp #21 and the Fred Washington, Sr. Women’s Relief Corps of SC #1.

Together, we will remember and honor over 200,000 USCT Veterans who fought for freedom and democracy. Join us for this powerful commemoration at the Grand Army of the Republic Hall in Beaufort, South Carolina, at noon on November 11, 2025.

🏅 Veteran's Day Reading of the Names
📆 November 11, 2025
🕑 Noon - 3:00 PM
📍 GAR Hall, 706 Newcastle Street, Beaufort, SC

08/16/2025

It's with great sadness that we announce the passing of our Camp Commander, Rev. Dr. Elijah Washington. His leadership and guidance on Camp #21 will forever be remembered and honored. Memorial arrangements have not yet been made, but we ask for you to keep his family in prayers.
Per our Department Commander, Jim Bryja of the Department of Georgia and South Carolina, SUVCW, he asks that members of the department wear your black memorial morning ribbon with your SUVCW badge for the next 30 days. 🙏🏾🙏🏾😥

The Reverend Dr. Elijah Washington 83, of Ladys Island and husband of Joyce Brown Washington, died Friday, August 15, 2025, at Beaufort Memorial Hospital. Arrangements are incomplete but will be published and announced later by Marshels Wright-Donaldson Home For Funerals, as the information becomes....

06/05/2025

Spread the word for this upcoming event.

05/27/2025

HONORING THOSE WHO SERVED AND DIED
~Memorial Day 2025~

Almost 160 men from the 1st SC Volunteers of African Descent (33rd US Colored Troops) died in the service of the United States during the Civil War. The majority of them were formerly enslaved men from South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, fighting for the freedom of themselves, their families and their communities.

Sadly, about 12% of the men who enlisted in the 1st SCVAD would die before the end of the war - the majority from diseases such as smallpox, typhoid fever and pneumonia, such as Pvt. Frank Alberti, Pvt. Syke Nightingale and Pvt. Caesar Grayson. A smaller number were actually killed in battle or died as a result of wounds suffered in battle, such as Pvt. William S. Verdier and Sgt. William Happy.

Soldiers from the 1st SC Volunteers of African Descent who died during the war are buried in several different major cemeteries throughout the region. Many are buried in Beaufort National Cemetery in Beaufort, SC, such as those graves pictured below, while some soldiers were buried in Laurel Grove Cemetery in Savannah, GA and several soldiers who died and were buried in Charleston, SC, were later reinterred at Florence National Cemetery in Florence, SC. Many are buried in smaller cemeteries and/or unknown graves.

ISRE is honored to be able to help tell the stories of the bravery and sacrifices of these American heroes, as we salute and honor the sacrifices of all our nation's military heroes who died in the service of our country, past and present.