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Exhibition Join In: Voluntary Assocations in America

Join In: Voluntary Assocations in America

The American Legion

Carl D. Vandersloot (1898–1963), composer. The American Legion, 1920. World War I Sheet Music Collection, Music Division, Library of Congress (113.00.00)
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Harris & Ewing, photographer. “American Legion Pays Tribute to One of Their Buddies at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Washington, D.C.,” 1938. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (114.0.00)
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The American Legion

Chartered and incorporated by Congress in 1919 as a patriotic association to support veterans, service members, and their communities, the American Legion is the nation’s largest wartime veterans’ service organization. The Legion has focused on four basic areas that it refers to as “pillars”: veterans’ affairs and rehabilitation; national security; Americanism; and child welfare. Relying heavily on volunteerism, the organization has contributed to public policy achievements for veterans, with the G.I. Bill of 1944 among its many significant accomplishments. Today, the Legion has nearly two million members in more than 13,000 posts worldwide.