Yesterday, in Running the Blockade, I wrote about an Union organization called MOLLUS, Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, which was formed by Union officers April 15, 1865, after Lincoln's death. Conspiracy rumors were all over the place. These were men sworn to be the Loyal Legion as it is often referred to.
At one time, nearly 12,000 Army, Navy, and Marine officers belonged to it, including Grant, Sherman, Sheridan, Custer, Schofield, McClellan, and Rutherford B. Hayes. In the Navy, David D. Porter, farragut, and dewey belonged.
The organization still exists and the past twoyears have had dedications at the Lincoln memorial in Washington, DC, and Lincoln Tomb in Springfield, Illinois. Today, membership is of direct descendants of Union officers (much like the Confederate Military Order of the Stars and Bars).
They are divided into Commanderies by state and have an interesting website at http://suvcw.org. Copies of their Loyal legion Historical Journal and Commandery reports can be seen. There is also a search engine through their archives.
Well Worth Checking It Out. --B-Runner
