Description
Correspondence, minutes, speeches, manuscripts, receipts, ephemera.
Background
The idea for the Memorial Grove came to Mrs. Eliza Holloway on October 5, 1896 and was proposed before the Edward Roby Circle,
No. 2, Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic on October 14, 1896. The proposal was accepted and the Memorial Grove Committee
appointed. Mrs. Waggoner was made chairman, Cornelia E. Shirland secretary, and Sarah A. Metcalf treasurer. A letter from
the Board of Capitol Commissioners, dated November 14, 1896, granted space in the Capital Park for the Grove. The official
dedication took place on May 1, 1897. A tree from George Washington's home, Mount Vernon, was planted April 25, 1903, and
Mrs. Waggoner received plants for the Grove as late as November 19, 1903, but the Committee per se is not mentioned in contemporary
accounts.