IN 1932, AS many as 20,000 veterans of WORLD WAR I had come to Washington to demand early payment of a service bonus from CONGRESS. The bonus wasn’t promised until 1945, but many veterans were poor and jobless in the DEPRESSION and wanted their payouts early. Vets camped out for weeks in the capital, and President Herbert Hoover’s get-tough approach played right into the hands of Democratic presidential candidate FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT. FDR won, of course, partly because voters didn’t appreciate the sight of war heroes having their tent city burned down by the military they once served. When the vets tried again with a new president in 1933, they still were denied the bonus, but both Roosevelt and his wife, Eleanor, met with them and offered them public works jobs. Even though the bonus marchers lost both battles, they did win the war–for their sons, at least. In 1944, to avert another bonus-march-type debacle, Congress passed the GI BILL.
Military officers who figured prominently in the rousting of the bonus marchers: DOUGLAS MACARTHUR, DWIGHT EISENHOWER AND GEORGE PATTON.
Amount of the bonus: $1.25 for each day overseas, $1 for each day in the states.
Number of known surviving U.S. veterans of World War I: 4.
Sources: Tribune archives, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
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nwatkins@tribune.com
