When the Civil War ended, the United States faced a Reconstruction that would test its resolve in dealing with race, equality, and sectionalism. With Abraham Lincoln gone, others would have to provide vital leadership for “the unfinished work” that lay ahead. Coming home irrevocably changed by all they had seen, done, endured and accomplished, a sizable proportion of Union servicemen had been politically radicalized. More than the average civilian, they realized that what remained to be done promised to be as bitter, divisive, and perilous as the war itself, if not more so. This presentation will show how white and black Northern veterans sustained their dedication to the causes for which they had battled and bled, and continued the struggle for freedom and opportunity for every American in the decades after the Civil War. In the same vein, how they created the model of social activism based on military service that American citizen soldiers, sailors, and marines have emulated in modern times, and the enduring power of veterans’ warrior identity, will also be discussed.