Frank Buckles, the last surviving U.S. veteran of World War I.
Frank Buckles, the last surviving U.S. veteran of World War I.
THREAD BUMP.
Wow it is hard to believe there is only one WWI survivor.
When I was a kid there were three living veterans of the War Between the States. One of them lived in nearby Crestview, FL.
I noticed some recent research suggests that he was in fact the last survivor as census records proved the other two were not born when they claimed.
Wow.I amazed that Gabe Pressman is still with us.
Amen, brother! Preach on!
I’ve always called it Armistice Day. And in February, I’ll be celebrating Washington’s Birthday, not “Presidents’ Day.”
please check this out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqFoqtpUFY8&feature=player_embedded#
its done by a heavy metal band
well because pop culture will have none of it
Mr. Buckles is a reminder that veterans of World War I never received the recognition—or benefits—they deserved. When they returned from Europe, there was no GI Bill promising education benefits, health care or home loans. There were a few parades, but we never got around to building a monument to the “Doughboys” who fought on the western front, and turned the tide of the war in the allies’ favor.
And finally, when thousands of impoverished veterans camped in Washington in 1932, requesting early payment of promised service “bonuses,” they were forcibly dispersed by the U.S. Army, under the command of Douglas MacArthur.
As a student of history, I have no objection to referring to a holiday by its original name. But if we want to remember today as Armistice Day, we need to remember our shabby treatment of World War I veterans. It’s a credit to men like Frank Buckles that most never complained and went on with their lives. Now, it’s almost too late to honor the men who won the Great War.
Statue of General Pershing, Pershing Square, Los Angeles