American Legion

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For other uses of American Legion, see American Legion (disambiguation)

The American Legion is an organization of veterans of the United States armed forces who served in wartime. The Organization was founded in 1919 by veterans returning from Europe after World War I and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The group has nearly 3 million members.

In addition to organizing commemorative events and volunteer activities, the American Legion is active in U.S. politics. While its primary political activity is lobbying for the interests of veterans, including support for veterans benefits such as pensions and the Veterans Affairs hospital system, it has also been involved in more general political issues, generally taking a conservative position. Most criticism of the Legion is based on its political activities.

The state American Legions run an annual civic training event for high school juniors called Boys State. Two members from each Boys State are selected for Boys Nation. The American Legion Auxiliary runs Girls State and Girls Nation. The American Legion also hosts many social events.

History

Founding

The American Legion's Post Officers Guide recounts the organization's founding:

"A group of twenty officers who served in the American Expeditionary Forces (A.E.F.) in France in World War I is credited with planning the Legion. A.E.F. Headquarters asked these officers to suggest ideas on how to improve troop morale. One officer, Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., proposed an organization of veterans. In 1919, this group formed a temporary committee and selected several hundred officers who had the confidence and respect of the whole army. When the first organization meeting took place in Paris in March, 1919, about 1,000 officers and enlisted men attended. The meeting, known as the Paris Caucus, adopted a temporary constitution and the name The American Legion. It also elected an executive committee to complete the organization’s work. It considered each soldier of the A.E.F. a member of the Legion. The executive committee named a subcommittee to organize veterans at home in the U.S. The Legion held a second organizing caucus in St. Louis, Missouri, in May 1919.

Quentin Roosevelt Post 1 of St. Louis Mo. was established during the St. Louis Caucus which ran from May 9th through the 10th, 1919, making this the first American Legion post in the United States. Post 1 was named after Quentin Roosevelt, the son of President Theodore Roosevelt, a pilot who was shot down and killed during WWI.

The George Washington Post 1 in Washington, D.C., organized March 7, 1919, obtained the first charter issued to any post of The American Legion on May 19, 1919. Originally, the post was named the “General John Joseph Pershing Post Number 1” in part to its members’ sincere admiration of Pershing as a man, as well as their appreciation for his career as a soldier in the United States Army. However, at the St. Louis caucus that same year, members decided that posts of the American Legion should not be named after living persons, and therefore the "Pioneer Post" was given its new and current name. The post completed the constitution and made plans for a permanent organization. It set up temporary headquarters in New York City and began its relief, employment, and Americanism programs.

Congress granted the American Legion a national charter in September, 1919. American Legion Post No. 1 is in Wheeling, West Virginia.

From the diary of Alvin C. York:

"April 7, 1919 Paris--I arrived in Paris at 8:30 A.M. and 10:30 A.M. was our meeting. I was there on time at the Hotel De Babriel. So we had the meeting all day until 5:30 P.M. This second time I went to Paris was to attend the first meeting that was called to organize the American Legion. I represented my division as a noncommissioned officer. Captain Williams of the machine gun company represented the commissioned officers of our division. And we all organized the American Legion that day in the Hotel. And there were officers and men representing all of the different American outfits in France. So I am a charter member of the American Legion."

1910s

The first national convention of the American Legion was held from November 10-12, 1919, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at which time the attendees adopted a permanent constitution and elected officers to head the organization. The original purpose of the Legion was to "preserve the memories and incidents of our association in the great war". Prior to World War I, few rural, working-class, or even middle-class Americans traveled to Europe. For a majority of urban Americans, their understanding of Europe had been acquired through the European immigrants they knew. Thus the 2 million Americans who had served in the American Expeditionary Forces had very different experiences than their families, friends and neighbors. The American Legion allowed these young men and women who had served "Over There" to re-integrate into their hometowns and to still remain in contact with others who had been abroad. The Legion served as a support group, a social club and a type of extended family for former service men and women.

Some Legion groups engaged in strikebreaking activities during this time and into the 1930s. In 1919, a new American Legion group in Washington was involved in the Centralia Massacre (Washington).

1920s

The American Legion was very active in the 1920s. It was instrumental in the creation of the U.S. Veterans' Bureau, now known as the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Legion also created its own American Legion Baseball Program. Commander Travers D. Carmen awarded Charles Lindbergh its "Distinguished Service Medal," the medal's first recipient, on July 22, 1927.

1930s

In 1930, the American Legion Memorial Bridge in Traverse City, Michigan, was completed. In that year, the Traverse City city commission decided to purchase dedication plaques for $100 at the request of the American Legion.

By 1931, membership of the American Legion had reached 1 million.

The Sons of the American Legion formed at the American Legion's 14th National Convention in Portland, Oregon, on September 12-15, 1932. Membership is limited to the male descendants of members of the American Legion, or deceased individuals who served in the armed forces of the United States during times specified by the American Legion. In 2007, The Sons of the American Legion celebrated 75 years of service to God and Country. The organization has more than 300,000 members.

According to congressional testimony in the 1930s, several of the American Legion's leaders, including its original bankroller Irénée du Pont, plotted a fascist coup against the Government of Franklin D. Roosevelt called the Business Plot. According to testimony, the plot was averted because Major General Smedley Butler warned Roosevelt of the plan.

In 1935, the first Boys' State convened in Springfield, Illinois.

The American Legion's first National High School Oratorical Contest was held in 1938.

1940s

In 1942, the original charter of the American Legion was changed in order to allow veterans of World War II to join. Throughout the 1940s, the American Legion was very active in providing support for veterans and soldiers who fought in World War II. The American Legion campaigned for the G.I. Bill, which was signed into law in June 1944.

The American Legion was active in campaigning for the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II in relocation camps.

The first Boys Nation program was held in 1946.

1950s

The American Legion asked for a congressional investigation into the ACLU for their petitioning to end loyalty-oath laws for public workers such as school teachers during the red scare.

Veterans of the Korean War were approved for membership in the American Legion in 1950.

The American Legion Child Welfare Foundation was formed in 1954.

1960s

On May 30, 1969, the Cabin John Bridge, which carried the Capital Beltway (I-495) across the Potomac River northwest of Washington, D.C., was officially renamed to the " American Legion Memorial Bridge" in a ceremony led by Lt. Gen. Lewis B. Hershey, director of the U.S. Selective Service System.

1970s

In 1976, an outbreak of bacterial pneumonia occurred among those attending a convention of the American Legion at The Bellevue Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia. This form of pneumonia became known as Legionnaires' disease, or Legionellosis. The bacterium that causes the illness was later named Legionella.

1980s

After a 1989 U.S. Supreme Court decision, the American Legion launched and funded an unsuccessful campaign to win a constitutional amendment against harming the flag of the United States. The Legion formed the Citizens' Flag Honor Guard and it later became Citizens Flag Alliance.

1990s

In 1993, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts renamed a bridge in the city of Chicopee to the "American Legion Memorial Bridge".

Also in 1993, two members of Garden City, Michigan American Legion Post 396 shared an idea that would bond motorcycle enthusiasts in the Legion from the idea of Chuck Dare and post commander Bill Kaledas, the American Legion Riders was born. Joined by 19 other founding members the group soon found itself inundated with requests for information about the new group. As a source of information a website was set up, and it continues to be a source of information worldwide.

In a letter to U.S. President Bill Clinton in May 1999, the American Legion urged the immediate withdrawal of American troops from Operation Allied Force in Yugoslavia. The National Executive Committee of The American Legion met and adopted a resolution unanimously that stated, in part, that they would only support military operations if "Guidelines be established for the mission, including a clear exit strategy" and "That there be support of the mission by the U.S. Congress and the American people".

2000s

On August 30, 2005, Thomas P. Cadmus, National Commander, stated in an address to the Legion's National Convention that support for American troops in the War on Terror should be ensured by "any means necessary", in a statement which made oblique reference to anti-war protesters and direct reference to Jane Fonda's activities during the Vietnam War.

The Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, Steve Buyer (R-Ind.), announced that he planned to eliminate the annual congressional hearings for Veterans Service Organizations that was established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. In response, National Commander of the American Legion Thomas L. Bock had the following to say:

"I am extremely disappointed in Chairman Buyer's latest effort to ignore the Veterans Service Organizations. Eliminating annual hearings before a joint session of the Veterans Affairs Committees will lead to continued budgetary shortfalls for VA resulting in veterans being underserved."

By 2007, the American Legion Riders program has grown to over 600 chapters in the United States and overseas.

Membership eligibility requirements

A person is eligible for membership in the American Legion who was a member of the United States Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard or Air Force and assigned to active duty at some time during any of the following periods:

Membership Eligibility Dates

World War I: APRIL 6, 1917, TO NOVEMBER 11, 1918

World War II: DECEMBER 7, 1941, TO DECEMBER 31, 1946

NOTE: ** U.S. Merchant Marine eligible only from December 7, 1941 to August 16, 1945 **

Korean War: JUNE 25, 1950, TO JANUARY 31, 1955

Vietnam War: "FEBRUARY 28, 1961" TO MAY 7, 1975

NOTE: "December 22, 1961" shows on some documents! Feb 28 is the NEW DATE now showing...

Lebanon/Grenada: AUGUST 24, 1982, TO JULY 31, 1984

Panama: DECEMBER 20, 1989, TO JANUARY 31, 1990

Shield//Storm // GULF WAR(S): AUGUST 2, 1990, TO ("TODAY") or CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES AS DETERMINED BY THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT.(This includes CURRENTLY Active Service Members)...

Link to Post Officers Guide

From The Amerian Legion Questions and Answers page: Q: How do I know if I am eligible for membership in The American Legion?

A: Our organization was founded on the premise that all those serving in the US Armed Forces during times of national crisis, regardless of place of service, are eligible to belong to The American Legion. Our membership is based on period of service, not place of service. Therefore, if you have served at least one day of "active duty" during the eligibility dates, are presently serving in the military or have been honorably discharged, you may become a member.

Certain members of the Merchant Marines are also eligible for the American Legion if they served overseas during World War II through the Vietnam War. For details, prospective members should contact any American Legion Post Ajutant.

Organizational structure

Posts

The Post is the basic unit of the Legion and usually represents a small geographic area such as a single town or part of a county. There are roughly 14,900 posts in the United States. The Post is used for formal business such as meetings and a coordination point for community service projects. Often the Post will host community events such as Bingo, Hunter breakfasts, holiday celebrations, and etc. It is also not uncommon for the Post to contain a bar open during limited hours.

Districts

Each Department is divided into Divisions and/or Districts. Each District will oversee several Posts, generally about 20, to help each smaller group have a larger voice. Divisions are even larger groups of about 4 or more Districts. The main purpose of these "larger" groups (Districts - Divisions) are to allow one or two delegates to represent an area at Conferences, Conventions, and other gatherings, where a large numbers of Legionnaires may not be able to attend...

Departments

The Posts are grouped together into a state level organization known as a Department for the purposes of coordination and administration. There is a total of 55 Departments; one for each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, France, Mexico, and the Philippines. Canada was merged into Department of New York several years ago. The 3 Departments located overseas are intended to allow active duty military stationed and veterans living overseas to be actively involved with the American Legion similar to as if they were back in the states. The Department of France

consists of 29 Posts located in 10 European counties, the Department of Mexico

consists of 22 Posts located in Central America, and the Department of Philippines covers Asia and the Pacific Islands.

National headquarters

The main American Legion Headquarters is located on the Indiana War Memorial Plaza in Indianapolis. It is the primary office for the National Commander and also houses the historical archives, library, Membership affairs, and the Magazine editorial offices. The Legion also owns a building in Washington D.C. that contains many of the operation offices such as Legislative, Veterans Affairs, Media Relations, and etc.

List of National Commanders

Posts

Alabama

Florida

Maryland

Department of Maryland ()
Post 295, Gaithersburg ()

Minnesota

Post 317 - Emmons "Louis Tveite"
Post 225 - Forest Lake

Missouri

Post 1 - Quentin Roosevelt St. Louis ()

Nebraska

Post 90 - Valentine
Post 1 - Omaha, 7811 Davenport St. (402)391-6764
Post 30- Omaha, 1817 N. 33rd St.
Post 112 - Benson
Post 331 - South Omaha Melting Pot, 4830 S. 21st. St.
Post 374 - Millard, (402)895-1324

Nevada

New Hampshire

Post 79 - Manchester

New Jersey

Post 1 - Leonia
Post 19 - Bayonne
Post 165 - Bayonne
Post 170 - Rochelle Park
Post 415 - Saddle Brook

New York

Post 156 - City Island, Bronx, NY

Post 82 - Endicott, NY 13760

Post 118 - Queens, NY

Post 220 - Tupper Lake, NY

Post 94 - Babylon, NY

North Carolina

Department of North Carolina

The Department of North Carolina is subdivided into 5 Divisions with a Department Vice Commander (often called Division Commanders) who has the responsibility for the districts under their charge. In addition, each Division is sub-divided into 5 Districts. Each district is led by a District Commander and Vice Commander.

The governing body of the department is the Department Convention which is convened each June. The convention comprises delegates from each of the posts in the department.

Between Department Conventions the legislative and administrative power of the department is held by the Department Executive Committee. This committee (D.E.C.) comprises the Department Commander, the 5 Department Vice Commanders, the 25 District Commanders, the Department Judge Advocate, the Department Chaplain, and the Department Historian.

There is also a Department Administrative Committee that consists of 1 member from each of the 5 divisions. The members of the Department Administrative Committee are appointed to staggered, 5 year terms. The committee has authority to deal with certain standard items of department business between meetings of the DEC.

Ohio

Department of Ohio

The American Legion Department of Ohio consists of 605 Posts divided into 14 districts. With over 140,000 members, it is the largest veteran's organization in the state. The Department of Ohio is headquartered in Delaware, Ohio.

Post 3 - Ralph D. Cole, Findlay
Post 83 - Commodore Denig, Sandusky
Post 96 - William Paul Gallagher, Lima

Oklahoma

Frank H. Collings Post 111

Rhode Island

Auburn Post 20, Cranston

Texas

Department of Texas The American Legion, Department of Texas, is made up of over 90,000 Legionnaires in approximately 526 posts. The Department has four divisions. A Division Commander is elected annually in the Spring to serve a one year term, to work on membership and to coordinate the activities of the posts and Legionnaires within that geographical area. Each division is divided into districts with a total of twenty-three (23) Districts in the Department of Texas, each with a District Commander and other such officers as determined by each District.

Post 76, Austin (website)
Post 593, Converse (website)

11th District --- Serving Active Service Members, Veterans, their families and Communities - "The Heart of Texas" --- Serving Bell County, TX; Bosque County, TX; Coryell County, TX; Falls County, TX; Hamilton County, TX; McLennan County, TX and Milam County, TX --- This includes Fort Hood, one of the largest military bases in the world.
20th District (website)

Virginia

The American Legion Department of Virginia is comprised of 215 posts divided into 17 Districts, and has over 54,000 members. The Department Headquarters office is located in Richmond, VA

District 16
Post 7 - Pulaski
Post 8 - South Boston, Jeffress Boulevard
Post 10 - Robert Vincent McMaugh Post, Manassas
Post 16 - Lynchburg
Post 21 - Winchester
Post 24 - Alexandria
Post 25 - Braxton-Perkins Post, Newport News
Post 27 - Rockingham, VA
Post 28 - Triangle
Post 31 - Hampton
Post 39 - Williamsburg
Post 46 - Emporia
Post 48 - Phoebus Post, Hampton
Post 49 - Smithfield
Post 53 - Front Royal
Post 55 - Fredericksburg
Post 57 - Suffolk
Post 73 - Franklin
Post 74 - Charlottesville
Post 79 - Crews - Epperson - Puryear Post, South Hill
Post 85 - Arlington, 919 North Kansas Street
Post 86 - Adams Post, Kilmarnock
Post 105 - Stuart
Post 110 - Virginia Beach
Post 116 - Louisa
Post 120 - Disputanta
Post 128 - Greene County
Post 130 - Falls Church
Post 146 - Hopewell, 217 East City Point Rd, Hopewell, VA 23860
Post 149 - Dinwiddie
Post 150 - Brekenridge - Peters - Woods Post, Sterling
Post 151 - Emporia
Post 156 - Orange County
Post 159 - Chincoteague, 404 S. Main Street
Post 160 - Surry
Post 162 - Lorton
Post 176 - Springfield
Post 177 - Fairfax
Post 180 - Dyer-Gunnell Post, Vienna
Post 183 - Franklin
Post 184 - Wayne M. Kidwell Post, Herndon
Post 186 - Midlothian
Post 191 - Waverly
Post 199 - Woodstock
Post 204 - Norfolk
Post 210 - Richmond
Post 225 - Falls Church
Post 229 - Rural Retreat
Post 264 - Jarratt
Post 270 - McLean
Post 276 - Boykins
Post 284 - Colonial Heights
Post 290 - Stafford
Post 295 - Middleburg
Post 325 - Danville, P.O. Box 325 Danville, VA 24543
Post 320 - Spotsylvania
Post 340 - East Augusta County
Post 330 - Culpeper
Post 354 - Bon Air
Post 364 - Woodbridge
Post 1776 - Williamsburg
Post 1799 - Haymarket/Gainesville
Post 1976 - Annandale
Post 1995 - Centreville
Post 2001 - Ashburn

Washington, D.C.

George Washington DC Post 1 -

Ireland

Post 2 - Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland

References in popular culture

John Dos Passos included in his U.S.A. trilogy a detailed description of the Centralia Massacre, taking the IWW side in this affair.

The 1949 story "The Long Watch", by science fiction writer Robert A. Heinlein, was commissioned by the American Legion and published in the Legion's magazine. However, the story was reportedly "heavily edited" before being published - presumably because its theme - a one-man rebellion by a future space officer who sacrifices his life to foil a military coup and the use of nuclear weapons on civilian populations - can be read both as extolling patriotic self-sacrifice and as extolling rebelliousness and disobedience.

On their 1989 album, Key Lime Pie, the alternative rock band Camper Van Beethoven referenced the American Legion in their song "When I Win The Lottery", with the lyrics,

And when I win the lottery, gonna buy the house next to Mr. Red, White and Blue, and when I win the lottery, gonna buy Post 306 American Legion, paint it red with five gold stars.

In chapter 9 of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, it's revealed that Jay Gatsby was a member of the American Legion.