The Civil Warriors CWRT will hold its next meeting on Wednesday, August 13, 2025, at 7PM Pacific Time in-person at the Chatsworth Olive Garden. We have the pleasure of presenting the head of the LACWRT, Dean Smith, who will be talking about:

"The U.S. Sanitary Commission"

Come and  hear Dean Smith tell an amazing story, about one of the best-kept secrets in American history. Learn about the founding, goals, and organization, of the Sanitary Commission. Be amazed at the accomplishments of the Commission—the advancement of medical care for Union soldiers, the Sanitary Fairs, the quilts, and effectiveness and efficiency of “the best run enterprise in U.S. history.” In particular, learn about nine of the more notable women, who were just part of the thousands of women who volunteered to contribute to the success of the effort, as well as about what they did after the war, and their legacy.

Dean Smith is a third generation Los Angeles native. He earned his B.A, (1968), and M.A. (1970), degrees in Political Science, from the University of California, at Riverside. He had a 34-year career in public service, with Los Angeles County, and has been retired since 2004. Dean is a member of the Civil War Trust; Commander of the Gen. W. S. Rosecrans Camp No. 2, of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War; a Charter Member of Logan’s Brigade, an affiliate of the National Women’s Relief Corps; a former member of the Board of Directors, for the Drum Barracks Museum; and, President, and Program Chair, of the Los Angeles Civil War Round Table. He has created eight presentations, and has given talks to all five Southern California Round Tables, as well as to a number of other organizations, on a variety of Civil War topics.

We will be meeting in-person. We will send out the meeting information shortly before our meeting day (8/13/25). We meet in the back room of the Chatsworth Olive Garden at 19724 Norhoff Place. The doors open at 5:30PM for us to set the meeting up, have dinner and socialize. The presentation begins at 7PM. If you are a first-time visitor to the Civil Warriors, please contact us at cwrtsfv@gmail.com for information regarding the meeting. Guests, new members and returning members are always welcome to join us for this and future meetings! If you can’t make this meeting, please consider one of our exciting upcoming meetings noted in our Future Presentations section.

Future Presentations