The Confederate Survivors Association was a fraternal

Fraternal

Fraternal can refer to:*A fraternal benefit society is a non-profit, mutual aid organization that ensures members and their families and maintains an active lodge system. Members of a fraternal benefit society come together as local volunteer groups that conduct activities to benefit members and...

 organization for American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 veterans of the Confederate States Army

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

. It was based in Augusta, Georgia

Augusta, Georgia

Augusta is a consolidated city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located along the Savannah River. As of the 2010 census, the Augusta–Richmond County population was 195,844 not counting the unconsolidated cities of Hephzibah and Blythe.Augusta is the principal city of the Augusta-Richmond County...

, and remained active well into the 20th Century.

The Confederate Survivors Association (CSA) was a benevolent, historical and social association dedicated to preserving the comradeship of those who served all functions of Confederate military and naval service. Membership was based upon service, accompanied with endorsements verifying that service. The group was formally organized on May 3, 1878, but had its origins in an older organization known as the Cavalry Survivors Association, which had been established in August 1866 as one of the earliest Confederate veterans organizations. Capt. William B. Young was the president of the Cavalry Survivors Association for twelve years until it merged with the Confederate Survivors Association in 1878. Former Confederate general Goode Bryan

Goode Bryan

Goode Bryan was a planter, politician, military officer, and American Civil War general in the Confederate States Army. His brigade played a prominent role during the Battle of the Wilderness, fighting stubbornly until exhausting its ammunition.-Early life and career:Bryan was born in Hancock...

 presided over the first organizational meeting of the new CSA.

On June 2, 1879, the city of Augusta gave custody of the chimney of the city's Confederate Powderworks

Confederate Powderworks

The Confederate Powderworks was a gunpowder factory during the American Civil War, the only permanent structures completed by the Confederate States of America. Colonel G.W...

 to the CSA to "beautify it and protect it from injury as a Confederate Memorial." The group restored the brick chimney and added a memorial plaque.

The CSA adopted the United Confederate Veterans

United Confederate Veterans

The United Confederate Veterans, also known as the UCV, was a veteran's organization for former Confederate soldiers of the American Civil War, and was equivalent to the Grand Army of the Republic which was the organization for Union veterans....

' constitution in February 1894, but not without concern of loss of individual identity. The Augusta Confederate Survivors Association became Camp No. 435 of the United Confederate Veterans; however it retained its original name. In 1896, the Augusta CSA petitioned the UCV to change its name to Confederate Survivors Association so that the C. S. A. could be retained. At its peak, the CSA had over 900 members from throughout Georgia, although a large number were in the Augusta area. Another chapter had been founded in York County, South Carolina

York County, South Carolina

York County is a county located in the north-central section of the U.S. state of South Carolina. According to the 2010 census, the county's population was 226,073. It is the second largest county in the Charlotte metropolitan area...

, in 1880. In 1894, seven years after former Brig. Gen. Roswell S. Ripley

Roswell S. Ripley

Roswell Sabine Ripley was an officer in the United States Army during the Mexican-American War and, despite being Northern-born, a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the Civil War...

’s burial in Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston

Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...

, the local Confederate Survivors Association erected a monument to him.

In December 1898 after the Spanish-American War

Spanish-American War

The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...

, President William McKinley

William McKinley

William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...

 toured the South

Southern United States

The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...

 by train to celebrate the victory over Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 and to thank the citizens for their support of the war effort. During a whistle stop in Macon, Georgia

Macon, Georgia

Macon is a city located in central Georgia, US. Founded at the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is part of the Macon metropolitan area, and the county seat of Bibb County. A small portion of the city extends into Jones County. Macon is the biggest city in central Georgia...

, the 400 members of the Bibb County

Bibb County, Georgia

Bibb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 153,887. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 154,709...

 CSA camp warmly greeted the President, and one veteran presented him with a Confederate badge. McKinley may have been the first U.S. President to wear such an emblem in public.

Presidents, or commanders, of the association included Gen. Clement A. Evans

Clement A. Evans

Clement Anselm Evans was a Confederate infantry general in the American Civil War. He was also a noted politician, preacher, historian and prolific author....

 (1878–79); Col. Charles Colcock Jones, Jr. (1879–July 1893); Capt. F. E. Eve (1894–May 1897), Salem Dutcher (1897–1899), H. B. Smith (1889–1900), George W. McLaughlin (1900–?), George T. Lamback (1912), A. J. Twiggs (1921), and Gen. J. D. Fooshee (1936).

A collection of CSA records and artifacts is maintained in the Reese Library of Augusta State University

Augusta State University

Augusta State University is a public university located in Augusta, Georgia, United States and is the oldest institution in the state of Georgia ....

.