GAR Hat Blog - Frank E. Cooley Commander of Department of New York 1945 GAR Hat and Emblem; Had Position for 16 Days Whe He Died at 98 Years

Frank E. Cooley Last Commander of Department of New York 1945; GAR Calvary Officers Felt Hat with GAR Emblem and Acorn Cord; Served 16 Days When He Died at Age of 98; Answered the Last Bugle Call For Lew Benedict Post No. 5

Frank E. Cooley was born on January 22, 1847. When he was 17 years old he enlisted with the 8th Massachusetts Infantry under Colonel Benjamin F. Peach when Massachusetts asked for volunteers. Sometime after the war he settled in Albany, New York where he was a member of Lew Benedict Post No. 5.  In Post No. 5  he served in many capacity including Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster General in the State Department of New York GAR.

By 1941 he was one of only seven members of the Grand Army of the Republic members left attending the State Department of New York GAR convention.  In 1944 there were only four State Department of New York GAR member left.  In 1945 there were no known living member of GAR left in New York when he became Commander of State of New York GAR Department.

He took the Department Commander post at the death of John W. Hayes who had died on September 29, 1945 at the age of 101.  He held the position for 16 days when he himself died on October 15, 1945, at the age of 98.  In 1945 Cooley was the last member living of Post 5 and with his death closed when he answered  the last bugle call and was called home to his comrades.

By 1949 when the last National Gar Encampment was held there were only six surviving comrades left in the whole country that could attend and they decided to make it the last encampment. By 1956 there was one lone remaining member of the Grand Army of the Republic that participated in the civil war. His name was Albert Woolson and he died that year (1956) at the age of 107.  With his passing the last living civil war participant answered the last bugle call and the book was closed on the brave men from the north and south of the American Civil War.

We will never know Frank E. Cooley or much of his life, only through the effort of some people in America that will take the time to remember these fallen hero's and leave a little historical documentation for future Americans not yet born.  We do know that he kept the civil war alive till his last breath and participated in every encampment to keep the memory of his fallen comrade alive. Sadly there is an uncaring in America for lives extinquished in defending the cause of freedom, right or wrong their bravery should be paramont to the reason, again right or wrong.

In 2005 they had an auction online for some of Frank Cooley's personal civil war item.  they were selling his gar medals and his hat's, this one and a Kepi style one. I bid blindly on this and won it, never thinking I would get it.  This was at the height of the Internet frenzy when items were selling for ridiculous prices. The fun days of walking into a antique shop and buying a civil war badge or medal for ten or twenty dollars from a few years before were over. Many of the old collectors did this for the love of preserving history and as custodians of this history to be passed on.

With that said, I present Frank Cooley GAR officers cavalry type felt hat.  He wore this to many encampment as evidenced by the wear and tear you see on the inside of the hat.  It was made by the Man of Fashion company, which I have not been able to find any information on.   It has the G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic) emblem of wreath suround GAR and has a single cord doubled, held together with a acorn and the acorn ends.  They have aged beautifully and have that tarnish gold look that you look for in old pieces.
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Below you see Frank Cooley in his offical GAR New York Department photo.  He is wearing this hat and has his GAR member medal on. I will list a picture of a Member medal a little later. This picture below was taken in 1938. At the bottom of the photo it says Frank E. Cooley, Quartermaster General GAR,1847 - 1938.

Here we see him again wearing this hat at a convention and two of his State of New York Department GAR badges and his National GAR member medal (first one on left) I cannot make out the other two badges or souvenir medals.

Here is the inside of hat with the name Man of Fashion on the silk top and the leather sweat band.

Here is a good look at the acorn ends and the GAR emblem

This is some information I found years ago. When the intenet first started you could find so much information, now your lucky if you find anything.