Herbert Hoover and the Bonus Army
On July 28, 1932 (89 years ago today) President Herbert Hoover ordered the United States Army to forcibly evict the "Bonus Army", a group of World War I veterans who had gathered in Washington, D.C. Hoover ordered US Army soldiers under the command of General Douglas MacArthur to remove a these protesters the nation's capital. Hoover was nearing the end of his first (and only) term as president, unpopular because he was perceived as not doing enough to combat the Great Depression. What happened with the Bonus Army didn't help his chances for re-election, as an arrogant General MacArthur exceeded his orders by attacking the protesters, causing a number of casualties. The incident may have been the final nail in the coffin for Hoover's re-election campaign, which was already on life support. It is a sad chapter in American history, as the men who had fought for their country in 1917 and 1918 were attacked by the very army in which many of them had once served.
The Bonus Army was the popular name given to a group of about 43,000 protesters, composed on approximately 17,000 World War I veterans, their families, and other affiliated groups. The protesters gathered in Washington, D.C., in the spring and summer of 1932. Ravaged by the Great Depression, the group gathered in the nation's capital to demand the immediate cash-payment redemption of their service certificates. The payment wasn't technically due to them until 1945, but these desperate people needed the money now. Organizers of the march named the group the "Bonus Expeditionary Force", a reference to the name of the First World War's American Expeditionary Force. The news media abbreviated the name to the Bonus March. The group was led by Walter W. Waters, a former Army sergeant.
Many of the war veterans had been out of work since the beginning of the Great Depression. The World War Adjusted Compensation Act of 1924 had awarded them bonuses in the form of certificates that could not be redeemed until 1945. Each service certificate, issued to a qualified veteran soldier, bore a face value equal to the soldier's promised payment plus compound interest. The Bonus Army wanted the immediate cash payment of their certificates.
Retired Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler, one of the most popular military figures of the time, visited their camp to back the effort and encourage them. Some of the protesters camped out in government buildings and other parts of Washington. On July 28, 1932, U.S. Attorney General William D. Mitchell ordered the veterans removed from all government property. He also ordered the police to remove the Bonus Army veterans from their camp. When the veterans moved back into it, a group of them rushed two policemen trapped on the second floor of a building. The cornered police drew their revolvers and shot two veterans, William Hushka and Eric Carlson, who died from their wounds.
Realizing that the task was too much for the police, President Herbert Hoover then ordered the army to clear the veterans' campsite. Army Chief of Staff General Douglas MacArthur commanded the infantry and cavalry supported by six tanks. The Bonus Army marchers with their wives and children were driven out of the camp, and their shelters and belongings were ordered burned by MacArthur, in order to prevent their return.
At 4:45 p.m. that day, the 12th Infantry Regiment, Fort Howard, Maryland, under MacArthur's command, and the 3rd Cavalry Regiment, supported by six battle tanks commanded by Maj. George S. Patton, formed in Pennsylvania Avenue while thousands of civil service employees left work to line the street and watch. The Bonus Marchers, believing the troops were marching in their honor, cheered the troops until Patton ordered the cavalry to charge them. This prompted the spectators to yell, "Shame! Shame!"
After the cavalry charged, the infantry, with fixed bayonets and Adamsite gas, an arsenic-based vomiting agent, entered the camps, and began evicting veterans, families, and camp followers. The veterans fled across the Anacostia River to their largest camp and President Hoover ordered the assault stopped.
General MacArthur chose to ignore Hoover's order. He believed that the Bonus March was a Communist attempt to overthrow the government. MacArthur ordered a new attack. Fifty-five veterans were injured and 135 were arrested in the course of that attack. One veteran's wife miscarried. A baby, 12-week-old Bernard Myers, died in hospital after being caught in a tear gas attack.
During the military operation, Major Dwight D. Eisenhower, later President of the United States, served as one of MacArthur's junior aides. Believing it wrong for the Army's highest-ranking officer to lead an action against fellow American war veterans, he strongly advised MacArthur against taking any public role. Eisenhower later said: "I told that dumb son-of-a-bitch not to go down there. I told him it was no place for the Chief of Staff."
Hoover was incensed when he learned of MacArthur's disobedience to his order, but for some reason he refused to reprimand MacArthur. The entire incident was yet another devastating negative for Hoover, as the 1932 election approached. His opponent, New York governor and Democratic presidential candidate Franklin Roosevelt said of Hoover: "There is nothing inside the man but jelly!"
A second, smaller Bonus March was held in 1933 at the start of the Roosevelt Administration. It was defused in May with an offer of jobs for the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) at Fort Hunt, Virginia, which most of the group accepted. Those who chose not to work for the CCC by the May 22 deadline were given transportation home. Like his predecessor, Roosevelt refused to pay the men their bonuses, but in 1936, Congress overrode Roosevelt's veto and paid the veterans their bonus years early.
Following is a YouTube video showing some film footage of the Bonus Marchers:
The Bonus Army was the popular name given to a group of about 43,000 protesters, composed on approximately 17,000 World War I veterans, their families, and other affiliated groups. The protesters gathered in Washington, D.C., in the spring and summer of 1932. Ravaged by the Great Depression, the group gathered in the nation's capital to demand the immediate cash-payment redemption of their service certificates. The payment wasn't technically due to them until 1945, but these desperate people needed the money now. Organizers of the march named the group the "Bonus Expeditionary Force", a reference to the name of the First World War's American Expeditionary Force. The news media abbreviated the name to the Bonus March. The group was led by Walter W. Waters, a former Army sergeant.
Many of the war veterans had been out of work since the beginning of the Great Depression. The World War Adjusted Compensation Act of 1924 had awarded them bonuses in the form of certificates that could not be redeemed until 1945. Each service certificate, issued to a qualified veteran soldier, bore a face value equal to the soldier's promised payment plus compound interest. The Bonus Army wanted the immediate cash payment of their certificates.
Retired Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler, one of the most popular military figures of the time, visited their camp to back the effort and encourage them. Some of the protesters camped out in government buildings and other parts of Washington. On July 28, 1932, U.S. Attorney General William D. Mitchell ordered the veterans removed from all government property. He also ordered the police to remove the Bonus Army veterans from their camp. When the veterans moved back into it, a group of them rushed two policemen trapped on the second floor of a building. The cornered police drew their revolvers and shot two veterans, William Hushka and Eric Carlson, who died from their wounds.
Realizing that the task was too much for the police, President Herbert Hoover then ordered the army to clear the veterans' campsite. Army Chief of Staff General Douglas MacArthur commanded the infantry and cavalry supported by six tanks. The Bonus Army marchers with their wives and children were driven out of the camp, and their shelters and belongings were ordered burned by MacArthur, in order to prevent their return.
At 4:45 p.m. that day, the 12th Infantry Regiment, Fort Howard, Maryland, under MacArthur's command, and the 3rd Cavalry Regiment, supported by six battle tanks commanded by Maj. George S. Patton, formed in Pennsylvania Avenue while thousands of civil service employees left work to line the street and watch. The Bonus Marchers, believing the troops were marching in their honor, cheered the troops until Patton ordered the cavalry to charge them. This prompted the spectators to yell, "Shame! Shame!"
After the cavalry charged, the infantry, with fixed bayonets and Adamsite gas, an arsenic-based vomiting agent, entered the camps, and began evicting veterans, families, and camp followers. The veterans fled across the Anacostia River to their largest camp and President Hoover ordered the assault stopped.
General MacArthur chose to ignore Hoover's order. He believed that the Bonus March was a Communist attempt to overthrow the government. MacArthur ordered a new attack. Fifty-five veterans were injured and 135 were arrested in the course of that attack. One veteran's wife miscarried. A baby, 12-week-old Bernard Myers, died in hospital after being caught in a tear gas attack.
During the military operation, Major Dwight D. Eisenhower, later President of the United States, served as one of MacArthur's junior aides. Believing it wrong for the Army's highest-ranking officer to lead an action against fellow American war veterans, he strongly advised MacArthur against taking any public role. Eisenhower later said: "I told that dumb son-of-a-bitch not to go down there. I told him it was no place for the Chief of Staff."
Hoover was incensed when he learned of MacArthur's disobedience to his order, but for some reason he refused to reprimand MacArthur. The entire incident was yet another devastating negative for Hoover, as the 1932 election approached. His opponent, New York governor and Democratic presidential candidate Franklin Roosevelt said of Hoover: "There is nothing inside the man but jelly!"
A second, smaller Bonus March was held in 1933 at the start of the Roosevelt Administration. It was defused in May with an offer of jobs for the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) at Fort Hunt, Virginia, which most of the group accepted. Those who chose not to work for the CCC by the May 22 deadline were given transportation home. Like his predecessor, Roosevelt refused to pay the men their bonuses, but in 1936, Congress overrode Roosevelt's veto and paid the veterans their bonus years early.
Following is a YouTube video showing some film footage of the Bonus Marchers: