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Show Last GAR Commander Dies: Cnly Nine 'Buddies' Left VANCOUVER, Wash. The last commander in chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, Theodore A. Penland, 101 died recently of a heart attack. His death leaves only nine GAR survivors. In the Civil War, he served as a private in the 152nd Indiana Volunteers Volun-teers with the Army of the Potomac. Potom-ac. His father and three brothers served in the Union Army. His father was killed in the second battle bat-tle of Bull Run. Penland was elected commander in chief of the GAR at the 1948 convention con-vention at Lansing. Mich. At that time he said: "I'm going back to Indianapolis next year to close up the last encampment. en-campment. We hold our first one there. Most of the boys are pretty old and tired. They can't take it any more." Some of his buddies, frail but still stubborn, tried to talk him into holding "just one more encampment," encamp-ment," but Penland held firm. He admitted that he wanted to be known as the "last comander ii chief of the GAR." |