1825 John Quincy Adams - Pensions for Revolutionary War Veterans

In 1825, President John Quincy Adams made a passionate plea to Congress to remedy a situation where many aging Revolutionary War Veterans were excluded from receiving pension benefits because they were unable or too embarrassed to provide proof of their "absolute indigence (extreme poverty)".  Believe it or not, the last Revolutionary War veteran to receive a pension was Daniel Frederick Bakeman in 1867.

In 1802, when the Military Peace Establishment act was passed, the pensions of disabled soldiers was set at half the pay of a lieutenant-colonel for commissioned officers, and and not to exceed $5 per month for non-commission officers.   On March 18, 1818 Congress expanded the pension laws to cover any Revolutionary Veterans who had serviced in a Continental Military organization or in the U. S. naval service for 9 months or until the end of the war.  The new basis for pension payout, was financial need, and became plagued with accusations that many applicants were feigning poverty to obtain benefits.  So, on May 1, 1820, Congress passed remedial legislation to proof of "absoltute indigence" with a certification of estate and income causing several thousand pensioners to be dropped. As President John Quincy Adams explained, many veterans who were truly "in want" were either unable to provide this evidence or "deeply reluctant" to give up all virtue by exposing their poverty.  Adams, concluded that the "result has been that some among the least deserving have been retained" while others who were truly in want had "been stricken from the list". 

President Adams, who knew George Washington personally, and still had memories of many patriots who fought in the Revolutionary war, wanted Congress to take action.   Adams described these men as "venerable relics of an age gone by" who were diminishing in number, and decaying in body and mind.   In his first State of the Union Address, President Adams gave an passionate plea to Congress to treat these veterans with dignity and indulgence.   Adams wanted to remove the indigence requirement altogether and let proof of service alone be enough to spare these Revolutionary War veterans from want of need in their last days. Adams urged congress to revise the 1820 act to allow for special cases which would mitigate the  risk of excluding the veterans "to whom charity now bestowed can scarcely discharge the debt of justice".

"The operation of the laws relating to the Revolutionary pensioners may deserve the renewed consideration of Congress. The act of 1818-03-18, while it made provision for many meritorious and indigent citizens who had served in the War of Independence, opened a door to numerous abuses and impositions. To remedy this the act of 1820-05-01, exacted proofs of absolute indigence, which many really in want were unable and all susceptible of that delicacy which is allied to many virtues must be deeply reluctant to give. The result has been that some among the least deserving have been retained, and some in whom the requisites both of worth and want were combined have been stricken from the list. As the numbers of these venerable relics of an age gone by diminish; as the decays of body, mind, and estate of those that survive must in the common course of nature increase, should not a more liberal portion of indulgence be dealt out to them? May not the want in most instances be inferred from the demand when the service can be proved, and may not the last days of human infirmity be spared the mortification of purchasing a pittance of relief only by the exposure of its own necessities? I submit to Congress the expediency of providing for individual cases of this description by special enactment, or of revising the act of 1820-05-01, with a view to mitigate the rigor of its exclusions in favor of persons to whom charity now bestowed can scarcely discharge the debt of justice."

Pictured above is Daniel Frederick Bakeman, the last survivor receiving a veteran's pension for service in the Revolutionary War.  On February 14, 1867 Congress passed a special act to grant a pension to Bakeman even though he could not prove that he and served in the War.   Bakeman died on April 5, 1869 at the age of 109.   This was 21 years after the death of John Quincy Adams, but there is no doubt in my mind that had Adams lived long enough, he would have still been serving in Congress and would have cast his vote in favor of providing the pension.

In 1829, President Andrew Jackson urged Congress to once again review the pension law.  Jackson also urged Congress to have sympathy and cover all soldiers remaining who fought in the Revolutionary war half a century earlier.  But regarding, Adams' revision of the law to remove the indigence requirement, Jackson suspended it's operation as soon as it went into effect.  Apparently, it allowed more pensioners into the system than Congress had appropriated funds for.  These were soldiers of the War of 1812, not the Revolutionary war.

"I would also suggest a review of the pension law, for the purpose of extending its benefits to every Revolutionary soldier who aided in establishing our liberties, and who is unable to maintain himself in comfort. These relics of the War of Independence have strong claims upon their country's gratitude and bounty. The law is defective in not embracing within its provisions all those who were during the last war disabled from supporting themselves by manual labor. Such an amendment would add but little to the amount of pensions, and is called for by the sympathies of the people as well as by considerations of sound policy.
It will be perceived that a large addition to the list of pensioners has been occasioned by an order of the late Administration, departing materially from the rules which had previously prevailed. Considering it an act of legislation, I suspended its operation as soon as I was informed that it had commenced. Before this period, however, applications under the new regulation had been preferred to the number of 154, of which, on [March 27], the date of its revocation, 87 were admitted. For the amount there was neither estimate nor appropriation; and besides this deficiency, the regular allowances, according to the rules which have heretofore governed the Department, exceed the estimate of its late Secretary by about $50K, for which an appropriation is asked"

References

Presidency.ucsb.edu. (2018). John Quincy Adams: First Annual Message. [online] Available at: http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=29467 [Accessed 12 Jan. 2018].

Presidency.ucsb.edu. (2018).  Andrew Jackson: First Annual Message. [online] Available at: https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/first-annual-message-3 [Accessed 11 Nov. 2018].

En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Daniel F. Bakeman. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_F._Bakeman [Accessed 17 Jan. 2018].

En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Southern Campaigns: Pension Transactions. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Campaigns:_Pension_Transactions [Accessed 17 Jan. 2018].

Wagner, D. (2018). 1815 James Madison - Veteran's Pension Eligibility. [online] Stateoftheunionhistory.com. Available at: http://www.stateoftheunionhistory.com/2016/12/1815-james-madison-veterans-pension.html [Accessed 17 Jan. 2018].

Wagner, D. (2018). 1817 James Monroe - Pensions for Revolutionary War Veterans. [online] Stateoftheunionhistory.com. Available at: http://www.stateoftheunionhistory.com/2017/03/1817-james-monroe-pensions-for.html [Accessed 17 Jan. 2018].

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