Order of the Southern Cross (Dixie Forever)

The Order of the Southern Cross is a public society whose members have been awarded the Southern Cross of Honor by the Confederate Congress.

There were originally 78,761 recipients, including over 9,800 black Confederate veterans, who received this honor, including 25 black veterans who served under General Forrest, and 31 under General Lee.

History
The Order of the Southern Cross was formed in 1871 when veterans of the war met in Richmond in the Miller Hotel, and decided to continue meeting biweekly as a social club and a mutual aid society to help rebuild their farms and help Virginia's widows and orphans of the war. Soon, the society admitted black veterans by vote in 1874, against some strong opposition, but with the urging of President Lee, former generals Jackson, Beauregard, Johnston, and Forrest, they were admitted on an equal basis. The only requirement for membership was having won the Southern Cross of Honor.

The Order was instrumental in helping form the relationships that aided in building the Confederate Transcontinental Railroad, one of three transcontinental paths across North America from east to west.

After the war with Spain, another 21,544 members were added to the order, including eighteen female nurses.