Description:
Veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic, mature businessmen and children march along West Main Street (West Michigan Avenue) in August 1917 to observe the beginning of the Battle Creek Homecoming Celebration and Home Products Exposition. The Grand Army of the Republic, known as the GAR, was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army, Union Navy, Marines and the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service who served in the American Civil War. It was among the first organized advocacy groups in American politics, supporting voting rights for black veterans, promoting patriotic education, helping to make Memorial Day a national holiday, lobbying the United States Congress to establish regular veterans' pensions, and supporting Republican political candidates. Few young men participated in the 1917 parade, as the United States was entering its fourth month of participation in World War I. The photo, submitted by Bernal Aldrich, documents the parade route on the block just east of Carlyle Street. The step-gabled building was the First Presbyterian Church, across the street from what was the Marjorie Block and the future site of Wolverine Tower, later named Battle Creek Creek Tower.