History

Veterans History: A Complete Guide to the Department of Veterans Affairs

The history of Veterans benefits in the United States began in 1636 when Plymouth Colony passed a law providing support for disabled soldiers, establishing a tradition that continues today . The modern Department of Veterans Affairs traces its roots to the Veterans Administration, created by President Herbert Hoover on July 21, 1930, through Executive Order 5398, which consolidated three federal agencies . VA was elevated to Cabinet-level status under President Ronald Reagan on October 25, 1988, and became effective on March 15, 1989, making it the 14th Department in the President’s Cabinet .

Quick Facts

The Colonial and Revolutionary Era: America’s First Veterans Benefits

The United States’ commitment to Veterans predates the Declaration of Independence. In 1636, Plymouth Colony passed legislation to provide public maintenance for soldiers disabled in the Pequot War . This was the first law of its kind in North America and established a precedent that spread to other colonies. Maryland passed a notable law in 1678 that extended pensions to widows and dependent children of soldiers killed in service .

During the American Revolution, the Continental Congress recognized the need to support wounded soldiers. On August 26, 1776, Congress passed the first national pension law, providing half pay for life to soldiers and sailors incapable of earning a living due to wounds suffered in the War for Independence . This was the nation’s first program of disability benefits.

The Continental Congress also created the first military award for Continental Army soldiers on August 7, 1782 – the Badge of Military Merit, established by General George Washington. This award was later reinstated in 1932 as the Purple Heart .

The 19th Century: Expansion and the Civil War Era

After the Revolutionary War, pension pressure grew. A service pension (requiring military service but not a service-connected disability) was signed into law for Revolutionary officers and men “in need of assistance” in 1818 . The office handling these pensions was a small War Department office. By the mid-1830s, the Bureau of Pensions employed a staff of 18 dispensing $2-3 million in payments annually to 40,000 Veterans, widows, and dependents .

The pension system transformed after the Civil War. For the first time, the federal government regarded diseases contracted during military service as grounds for claiming disability . From 1863 to 1888, the Pension Bureau received an average of 40,000 applications annually from Union Veterans. The 1890 law expanded eligibility further, granting pensions to any Union Veteran too infirm to work, tripling pension numbers from 303,000 in 1883 to 966,000 in 1893 . By this time, pension spending consumed more than 30 percent of the federal budget .

The Civil War also created the foundation for today’s Veterans Health Administration. On March 3, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln signed the law establishing a National Soldiers and Sailors Asylum, later renamed the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers . The first home opened on November 1, 1866, in Togus, Maine . These sprawling campuses provided lifelong medical care and housing for thousands of Civil War Veterans .

During the Civil War, Congress passed legislation on July 17, 1862, empowering President Lincoln to purchase cemetery grounds “to be used as a national cemetery for the soldiers who shall die in the service of the country” . This was the first legislation establishing national cemeteries.

World War I and the Creation of the Veterans Bureau

World War I brought new types of benefits. In 1917, Congress established programs for disability compensation, insurance, and vocational rehabilitation . These were initially managed by multiple offices, including the Bureau of War Risk Insurance, Federal Board of Vocational Education, and the Public Health Service .

On August 9, 1921, President Warren G. Harding signed legislation creating the Veterans Bureau, the first independent federal agency to manage all facets of Veterans care . The bureau was centralized to bring services closer to Veterans and decentralized allocations of services to make them more accessible nationwide . The first director was Charles R. Forbes, who opened up to 140 field offices at the sub-district level .

1930: The Veterans Administration Is Born

On July 21, 1930, President Herbert Hoover signed Executive Order 5398, consolidating the Veterans Bureau, the Bureau of Pensions, and the National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers into a single federal agency: the Veterans Administration (VA) . At that time, there were 54 hospitals, 4.7 million living Veterans, and 31,600 employees . Brig. Gen. Frank T. Hines, who had led the Veterans Bureau since 1923, became VA’s first Administrator and the longest-tenured leader in VA history .

World War II and the GI Bill

World War II fundamentally changed American society and Veterans care. More than 16 million Americans served and became eligible for benefits after discharge . The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act – the “GI Bill of Rights” – signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on June 22, 1944, established new education benefits, unemployment compensation, and home loan guarantees .

The GI Bill’s impact was transformative. Before World War II, college was largely out of reach for most Americans. In 1947, Veterans accounted for 49 percent of college admissions . By the time the original GI Bill ended in 1956, 7.8 million of 16 million WWII Veterans had participated in an education or training program .

The VA Home Loan Guaranty program, also established in 1944, is the only provision of the original GI Bill still in force . From 1944 to 1952, VA backed nearly 2.4 million home loans for World War II Veterans . More than 21 million home loans have been guaranteed by VA since 1944 .

VA Administrator General Omar Bradley (1945-1947) expanded VA to handle the flood of claims. Central Office staff rose from 16,966 to 22,008, and field staff rose from 54,689 to 96,047 .

Post-War Era: Reorganization and the 1950s

In 1953, VA reorganized its services for medical care, financial assistance, and insurance into three departments:

• Department of Medicine and Surgery (forerunner of VHA)

• Department of Veterans Benefits (forerunner of VBA)

• Department of Insurance 

In 1946, the Department of Medicine and Surgery was established under Public Law 79-293, driving modernization and expansion of the VA medical system and partnerships with research universities .

The Vietnam Era and 1970s Expansions

In 1973, Public Law 93-43 authorized the transfer of 82 national cemeteries from the Army to the VA . Joined with 21 VA Veterans’ cemeteries, the National Cemetery System comprised 103 cemeteries .

In 1979, VA launched Operation Outreach to establish community-based Vet Centers providing mental health and readjustment counseling services to Veterans distrustful of VA hospitals .

VA research during this era produced Nobel Prize-winning work. Dr. Rosalyn Yalow and Dr. Andrew Schally received the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1977 for developing radioimmunoassay of peptide hormones .

1989: Becoming a Cabinet Department

On October 25, 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed the Department of Veterans Affairs Act, elevating VA to Cabinet-level status . The law took effect on March 15, 1989, under President George H.W. Bush, making VA the 14th Department in the Cabinet . Edward J. Derwinski served as both the last VA Administrator and first Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs .

Derwinski insisted on retaining the “VA” acronym because it had been familiar in American culture for nearly 60 years . President Bush said at the time, “There is only one place for the veterans of America, in the Cabinet Room, at the table with the President of the United States of America” .

The three administrations were re-designated as the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), and National Cemetery Administration (NCA) .

Modern VA: 1990s to Present

VA continues to innovate. VA pioneered electronic medical records with VistA, the Computerized Patient Record System, fully implemented in 1996 . In 1998, the Veterans Programs Enhancement Act re-designated NCA as an administration equal to VHA and VBA .

VA is now the second largest federal agency, with nearly 340,000 employees, approximately 32% of whom are Veterans themselves . Today’s VA has 170 VA Medical Centers, 1,269 outpatient sites, 141 national cemeteries, 56 VBA Regional Offices, and 300 Vet Centers .

The Post-9/11 GI Bill, established in 2009, has paid more than $50 billion to nearly 1.4 million Veterans and dependents .

Common Questions

1. When was the Veterans Administration created?

The Veterans Administration was created on July 21, 1930, when President Herbert Hoover signed Executive Order 5398, consolidating the Veterans Bureau, the Bureau of Pensions, and the National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers .

2. When did the VA become a Cabinet department?

President Ronald Reagan signed the Department of Veterans Affairs Act on October 25, 1988. The law took effect on March 15, 1989, under President George H.W. Bush, making VA the 14th Department in the Cabinet .

3. What was the GI Bill?

The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 – the “GI Bill of Rights” – was signed into law on June 22, 1944, providing education benefits, unemployment compensation, and home loan guarantees for World War II Veterans . It transformed American society by making college and homeownership accessible.

4. What are the three VA Administrations?

The three Administrations are: Veterans Health Administration (VHA, originally established as the Department of Medicine and Surgery in 1946), Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA, established as the Department of Veterans Benefits in 1953), and National Cemetery Administration (NCA, created when national cemeteries were transferred to VA in 1973 and elevated to Administration status in 1998) .

5. What was the first Veterans law in America?

In 1636, Plymouth Colony passed a law providing support for disabled soldiers . This was the first Veterans law in North America.

6. How many Veterans did the original GI Bill educate?

By the time the original GI Bill ended on July 25, 1956, 7.8 million of 16 million World War II Veterans had participated in an education or training program . In 1947, Veterans accounted for 49 percent of college admissions .

7. What VA innovations have helped all Americans?

VA’s Research and Development program has produced countless innovations, including the first successful implantable cardiac pacemaker (1960), the first long-term successful kidney transplant (1962), the transdermal nicotine patch (1984), and deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s disease (2009) . VA also pioneered electronic medical records .

8. What is the Purple Heart’s connection to VA?

The Purple Heart was established in 1932 as a reinstatement of General George Washington’s Badge of Military Merit from the Revolutionary War . Since then, more than 1.8 million Purple Hearts have been awarded . The award has a special relationship to VA as it is tied to many benefits within the system .

9. When did the National Cemetery System become part of VA?

In 1973, Public Law 93-43 authorized the transfer of 82 national cemeteries from the Army to the VA . They were joined with 21 VA Veterans’ cemeteries, making the National Cemetery System 103 cemeteries .

10. What is the oldest ongoing VA benefit?

The Pension Bureau’s roots date to the Revolutionary War pension system. The earliest pension law was passed by the Continental Congress on August 26, 1776 . Notably, VA still cared for the child of a Civil War Veteran and children of Spanish-American War and World War I Veterans with pensions in 2014 . The last Civil War beneficiary, the daughter of a Union soldier, died in 2020 at age 90 .

11. How has the VA healthcare system grown?

From 54 hospitals in 1930, VA has grown to 170 VA Medical Centers and 1,269 outpatient sites . Today, approximately 75% of all U.S. physicians have received some of their training in VA’s hospital system . VA is the largest provider of health care training in the United States, with over 7,200 affiliation agreements and clinical training provided to 120,000 interns, residents, and fellows annually .

12. How many employees does VA have?

VA has nearly 340,000 employees, and approximately 32% are Veterans themselves .

Key Takeaways

• Veterans benefits in America trace back to 1636, when Plymouth Colony passed the first law supporting disabled soldiers .

• The first national pension law was passed by the Continental Congress in 1776 during the Revolutionary War .

• The Veterans Administration was created on July 21, 1930, by President Herbert Hoover, consolidating three federal agencies .

• The GI Bill, signed on June 22, 1944, transformed American society by educating 7.8 million Veterans and guaranteeing millions of home loans .

• VA became a Cabinet-level Department on March 15, 1989, under President George H.W. Bush, as the 14th Department in the Cabinet .

• VA is the second largest federal agency, with 170 VA Medical Centers, 1,269 outpatient sites, 141 national cemeteries, and nearly 340,000 employees .

• VA has pioneered medical innovations including the first successful implantable cardiac pacemaker, the CT scanner, and the nicotine patch .

• Approximately 75% of all U.S. physicians have received some of their training in VA’s hospital system .

• The three VA Administrations are VHA (Healthcare), VBA (Benefits), and NCA (Cemeteries) .

• The Post-9/11 GI Bill has paid over $50 billion to 1.4 million Veterans and dependents since 2009 .

Official Resources

• VA History Office: department.va.gov/history

• VA News: news.va.gov

• VA.gov: va.gov

• Veterans Benefits Administration: benefits.va.gov

• Veterans Health Administration: va.gov/health

• National Cemetery Administration: cem.va.gov

• House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs: veterans.house.gov