Old Western Pennsylvania: October 2026

The Bonus Army and Its Final Days in Johnstown, PA

“When I marched off to war in 1917, I remember a Civil War veteran, over seventy years old, telling me, you are heroes now. But some day they’ll treat you like dogs.”

-Benjamin Shepard, WWI vet and member of the Bonus Army[1]

Surviving Flag from The Bonus Army.

Bayonets fixed, gas masks on, flames billowing, American soldiers marched forward behind tanks through clouds of tear gas, driving the enemy before them. The only problem…the enemy were former US soldiers, survivors of the killing fields of the first World War. This was not the trenches of France in 1918, but the streets of Washington D.C. in 1932. Veterans, both black and white, fled with their wives and children before the blades of bayonets and the treads of tanks, their few possessions perishing beneath the flames. This was how their government repaid their patriotism, the sacrifice of their youth, fewer than two decades before.

This is the story of the Bonus Army of 1932 and its demise in Johnstown, PA

The story begins in 1917. As the year began, the United States was still at peace, not involved in the European war that had raged since 1914. While neutral, the United States had supplied France and Britain with material and money to keep their war efforts alive. As the war progressed, debts mounted, all the while, the war remained in a brutal war of attrition. By 1917, France and Britain were approaching bankruptcy and defeat seemed a very real possibility. Their defeat would most likely lead to a default on their loans, which totaled over $8 billion between the two. So, it was fortuitous that the United States would enter the war on the side of the allies on April 2, 1917, objecting to Germany’s resumption of unrestricted submarine attacks and the claim of an attempted alliance with Mexico against the United States.

The American war effort mobilized immediately, creating an army that would eventually number almost five million soldiers, sailors, and marines. Over 116,000 Americans would lose their lives in the conflict and over 200,000 more were wounded. Millions of civilians at home would also work in support of the war effort. While those in the service earned around $1 per day, even in a war zone, those at home were earning many times more, safely far away from the trenches.

Image from the reverse of the "Bonus" certificate.

Following the war, many states sought to correct this imbalance in pay by issuing “adjusted compensation”, giving soldiers a “bonus” for their time served over seas. This would be followed by a national “Adjusted Compensation Act” in 1924 from the Federal government. Pay would be adjusted for those in service: they would receive an additional $1 per day spent in service at home, and $1.25 for each day spent overseas. The only issue was, the pay —called a “bonus”— was not payable until 1945 or upon the death of the veteran, thus earning the nickname of the “tombstone bonus”.[2]

Sample of an Adjusted Service Certificate, issued 1924.

Unfortunately for the veterans, and the rest of the nation, the Great Depression arrived in 1929, bringing financial ruin for millions as unemployment rates reached almost 25%.[3] As veterans fought for survival, they pressed their government for early payment of the “bonus”. Veterans and veteran organizations pushed politicians for early payment, demonstrating and testifying in Washington, DC during 1930-1931.[4] Unfortunately, their voices fell on deaf ears as politicians refused early payment. Following another Congressional effort over payment, a veteran in Portland, OR vowed to take action. Former sergeant Walter R. Waters decided to march on Washington, DC to demand payment for himself and his fellow vets, stating “there was little difference between hunger in Washington and hunger in Portland”.

Novelty stamp in support of paying the Bonus.

At his urging, a group formed to start a march on Washington, DC in May 1932. News of Waters and his movement spread across America, gaining the support of the nation, with thousands of veterans joining him. As the march grew, they named themselves the Bonus Expeditionary Force (or BEF) in a play on the American Expeditionary Force, the name used for US forces serving in Europe during WWI.[5]

Throughout June and July, veterans and their families swarmed Washington, DC, eventually swelling to nearly 30,000 participants. Local police forces dissuaded them from staying, but realizing the veterans wouldn’t leave, they directed them to settle in the Anacostia section of the Capitol. The BEF would name their settlement Camp Marks, in honor of a local police officer, Captain Sidney J. Marks, who had shown them respect and compassion.[6]

One of the most significant achievements of the BEF at Camp Marks was the lack of racial discrimination. Veterans, both black and white, lived with each other in harmony. With a shared past of military service and a shared goal of assistance for their families, they ate, slept, and lived with each other in a way that was largely unknown in contemporary American society. While Camp Marks was a microcosm of American society, a reporter for an African-American newspaper noted a key omission, “there was one absentee, Jim Crow…There I found black toes and white toes sticking out side by side from a ramshackle town of pup tents, packing crates, and tar-paper shacks. Black men and white men, veterans of the segregated army that had fought in World War I, lined up equally, perspired in sick bays side by side. For years, the US Army had argued that General Jim Crow was its proper commander, but the Bonus Marchers gave lie to the notion that black and white soldiers—ex-soldiers in their case—couldn’t live together”.[7]

This renunciation of segregation was noted by the police and government officials, fostering suspicions and fears. Soon, the BEF was labeled as a communist gathering, bent on overthrowing the US government and the American way of life in an effort to destroy the massive support of the American people.[8]

The veterans remained peaceful as they pushed for the passage of early payment. However, such legislation would fail. Undeterred, the BEF was determined to stay until they received their bonus. By late July 1932, politicians, police, and US military leaders wanted the BEF gone. On July 28, police forces moved in, driving veterans from where they lived in abandoned buildings. A struggle ensued, ending with police shooting two veterans, one fatally.

US troops after burning out the Bonus Army.

The outbreak of violence was the pretext needed for the US Army to move forward. Under the orders of General Douglas MacArthur, tanks, cavalry, artillery, and infantry units moved in, bayonets fixed, dispensing tear gas. Their orders were to drive out the veterans and burn their camp to the ground. With their few possessions now destroyed, the Bonus Army had nothing left and no home to return to.[9]

Ruins of Camp Marks.

The following morning, as fires still simmered, rumors ran amongst the remains of the BEF that they would be welcome in Johnstown, PA. Eddie McCloskey, mayor of Johnstown, was a supporter and frequent visitor to the BEF camp. A week prior to the eviction, he had told Waters that if the BEF was ever driven out of Washington, they could set up in Johnstown. Despite protests from the American Legion and Chamber of Commerce, McCloskey repeated his offer to Waters, proclaiming “To Hell with everybody, let them come!” Reassured by this declaration, Waters directed his followers to Johnstown. McCloskey expected just a few hundred to take up his offer of refuge. He was shocked when he heard that over 8,000 were on their way to his hometown.[10]