Founded originally in 1863 as an organization to provide for the relief of disabled soldiers and the widows and orphans of those who had died in service to the Confederacy, today the Order of the Southern Cross serves as a philanthropic organization whose purpose is the preservation of our Southern heritage and its history.

The original founders of the Order of the Southern Cross, Lt. General Leonidas Polk, Major General Patrick Cleburne and Reverend Charles Quintard had hoped that the organization they were creating, “The Order of the Comrades of the Southern Cross” would help relieve the soldier’s anxieties as to the suffering of their families, enabling them to rededicate themselves once again to the great battles that lay ahead for the Army of Tennessee.

Today, the main purpose of the Order of the Southern Cross is to provide financial assistance to qualified groups through its Grants Program and to offer scholarships to college-bound students through its Order of the Southern Cross Memorial Scholarship. We continue to honor the sacrifices of those old soldiers by helping to preserve our Southern heritage and history.