It was the nation's first veterans association open to both officers and enlisted men, and membership grew to over 400,000. The GAR was responsible for securing large pensions for veterans and members played an active role in the election of six Union veterans as U.S. president. In the early 20th century, GAR membership declined as veterans died of old age, and organization leaders began plans to memorialize them and the GAR itself. To honor the group's founder, the GAR, at the behest of General Charles Partridge and the National Tribune, raised $35,000 from its members to erect a memorial for Stephenson. Congress appropriated an additional $10,000 on March 4, 1907. GAR leaders had specific plans for the memorial, which left little leeway for artist creativity. They wanted a tall, triangular granite shaft with three figures representing the organization's motto. J. Massey Rhind (1860–1936), a Scottish-American sculptor who immigrated to the United States in 1889, was chosen for the project. At the time, he was considered one of the country's best architectural sculptors known for the large Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Syracuse, New York. The architectural firm Rankin, Kellogg & Crane was chosen to design the central shaft of the memorial, and the reliefs were founded by Roman Bronze Works. William Gray & Sons performed contracting duties for the memorial, and P. R. Pullman and Company was chosen as the contractor for the foundation. A resolution passed by the Senate in April 1902 provided the memorial to be erected on any of the city's public lands other than the Library of Congress and Capitol grounds. The site chosen, at the corner of 7th Street and Louisiana Avenue (now Indiana Avenue) NW, was selected by a commission appointed by Congress. The commission consisted of Secretary of War Jacob M. Dickinson, Senator George P. Wetmore, Representative Samuel W. McCall, General Louis Wagner, and Thomas S. Hopkins. The soil at the chosen site, present-day Indiana Plaza, could not support the memorial's weight, so the concrete foundation had to be expanded. Dedication The Stephenson memorial was formally dedicated at 2:30 pm on July 3, 1909. Hundreds of elderly veterans attended the event, many wearing their military uniforms. Prominent attendees included President William Howard Taft and Senator William Warner. Following the invocation, GAR commander-in-chief Colonel Henry M. Nevius gave an impassioned speech about the sacrifices made by Union forces during the Civil War. He said