Frank Buckles

Infobox Military Person
name= Frank Buckles
born= birth date and age|1901|2|1


caption= Frank Buckles at age 16
nickname=
placeofbirth= Bethany, Missouri, United States
placeofdeath=
allegiance= flagicon|United States United States
branch= United States Army
serviceyears= 1917 – 1920
rank= Corporal
unit= 1st Fort Riley Casual Detachment
commands=
battles= World War I
awards= World War I Victory Medal
Army of Occupation of Germany Medal
French Legion of Honor
relations=
laterwork=

Frank Woodruff Buckles (born February 1 1901) is, at age 107, the last identified American veteran of the First World War. [ [http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/orl-mww1vets2807may28,0,1647526.story?coll=orl-news-headlines Topic Galleries - OrlandoSentinel.com] ]

Biography

Buckles was born in Bethany, Missouri. He enlisted at the beginning of the United States' involvement in World War I in April 1917. Only sixteen at the time, he lied and said he was 21. Before being accepted into the United States Army, he was turned down by the Marines due to his weight. In 1917, the sixteen-year-old Buckles was sent to France on the RMS "Carpathia", the same ship that had rescued the survivors of the "Titanic" sinking five years before. After the Armistice in 1918, Buckles escorted prisoners of war back to Germany. Following his discharge, he returned to Germany in 1936 and would stay there until 1938. He saw what he later realized was the beginning of the Holocaust. [ [http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2008/may/25/052508vet/ Buckles interview] ]

During World War II, Buckles was a civilian working for an American shipping line in the Philippines. He was captured by the Japanese in 1942 and spent three years in a prison camp. [ [http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-03-27-cover-ww1-vet_N.htm?POE=NEWISVA "'One of the last': WWI vet recalls Great War", USAToday.com, March 27, 2007, Andrea Stone] ]

Buckles today

He currently lives in Charles Town, West Virginia. He now has at least one interview each day. Buckles stated in an interview with "The Washington Post" that he believes the United States should only go to war "when it's an emergency." [ [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/11/AR2007111101576.htmlWorld War I Veteran Reflects on Lessons] ] [ [http://thinkprogress.org/2007/11/12/106-year-old-wwi-veteran-speaks-on-the-iraq-war 106-year old WWI veteran speaks on the Iraq war] ] When asked how he could live so long, Buckles replied, "Hope".

The U.S. Library of Congress included him in its Veterans History Project and has audio, video and pictorial information on Buckles' experiences in both world wars, including a full 148-minute video interview. [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp-stories/loc.natlib.afc2001001.01070/#vhp:clip, May 29, 2007, Library of Congress, Veterans History Project] His life was featured on the Memorial Day 2007 episode of "NBC Nightly News". On March 6, 2008, he met with President Bush at the White House. [ [http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/06/oldest.american.vet/index.html Bush thanks WWI veteran for 'love for America'] ] The same day, he attended the opening of a Pentagon exhibit featuring photos of the nine surviving World War I veterans. Of the group, only Buckles and Canadian veteran John Babcock are left. Babcock was unable to attend.cite news|title = Last doughboy gets Presidential 'Thank You'|publisher = abcnews.com| date = 2008-03-06|url = http://abcnews.go.com/WN/Story?id=4404661|accessdate = 2008-03-07]

Buckles has said he will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. He was eligible for cremation and placement in a columbarium at Arlington,cite news|url=http://www.wsaz.com/news/headlines/17465464.html |title=Feds Approve Burial of Last WWI Vet at Arlington |author=Associated Press |publisher=WSAZ-TV |date=2008-04-10 |accessdate=2008-04-10] but expressed a desire for burial there, which he was not eligible for under current Arlington policy.cite news|url=http://www.salem-news.com/articles/april082008/ww1_vet_4-8-08.php |title=Arlington Cemetery Makes Historic Exception for World War I Veteran |publisher="Salem-News.com" |date=2008-04-08 |accessdate=2008-04-10] Friends and family members took up his cause, but made no headway until a family member, Ken Buckles, contacted Ross Perot, whom Frank had met at a history seminar in 2001. Within two weeks, Perot had successfully intervened with the White House, and Buckles received special approval for underground burial at Arlington on March 19, 2008.

Awards

Buckles was awarded the Legion of Honor by then French president Jacques Chirac.

On May 25, 2008, Buckles received the Veterans of Foreign Wars’ Gold Medal of Merit at the Liberty Memorial. He sat for a portrait that will hang in the National World War I Museum, as "the last surviving link." [cite news|url=http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/635720.html |title=‘Last surviving link’ to World War I earns a fitting salute|author=Matt Campbell|publisher=The Kansas City Star |date=2008-05-25 |accessdate=2008-05-25]

ee also

*Last surviving World War I veteran by country‎
*Surviving veterans of World War I

References

External links

* [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/12/opinion/12rubin.html Over There — and Gone Forever] (The New York Times Op-Ed about Frank Buckles, written by Richard Rubin and published on November 12, 2007)
* [http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/07/war.veteran/index.html Last surviving U.S. World War I vet honored by president at CNN]