Last Living US WWI Vet Dies in W. Va. at Age 110

Wow! This was an interesting fellow who was determined to fight for his country at the age of 16. Since 2008 he was the last soldier standing.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — He was repeatedly rejected by military recruiters and got into uniform at age 16 after lying about his age. But Frank Buckles would later become the last surviving U.S. veteran of Wold War I.

A family spokesman says Buckles, who also survived being a civilian POW in the Philippines in World War II, died of natural causes Sunday at his home in West Virginia. He was 110.

Buckles had been advocating for a national memorial honoring veterans of the Great War in the nation's capital.

When asked in February 2008 how it felt to be the last of his kind, he said simply, "I realized that somebody had to be, and it was me." And he told The Associated Press he would have done it all over again, "without a doubt."

www.newsmax.com...

Wow what a powerful quote. Thank you for sharing.

reply to post by jibeho


I wonder if D.C. is still dragging their feet on restoring/installing the memorial.

All those guys are gone now. Next will be the WW2 generation.

I pray he is in the happy hunting ground now, with his band of brothers.

Respectful post

I don't mean to be disrespectful to this guy as he's a very brave sole, but surly the US can't have that many WW1 vets as the Americans didn't really join the WW's till the dieing years of world war 2.

Late as always!

Here is another article with more information about this man of honor.

townhall.com...

reply to post by simples

More than 4.7 million people joined the U.S. military from 1917-18. As of spring 2007, only three were still alive, according to a tally by the Department of Veterans Affairs: Buckles, J. Russell Coffey of Ohio and Harry Richard Landis of Florida.

townhall.com...

Certainly not a small figure to sneeze at. Granted, all did not serve directly in WWI. Consider that the total worldwide deployment in WWI was 4,734,991.

reply to post by simples


That's just silly and this isn't the thread for that kind of nonsense....no offense.

It's remarkable that there are still veterans from World War One around, after all it was almost 100 years ago.

I believe the last British veteran now lives in Australia, apparently he served in the merchant navy.

I'm surprised to learn the United States doesn't have a national memorial to honour it's World War One veterans.

reply to post by simples


Drafted 2.8 million men, by the summer of 1918 was sending 10,000 a day to France. Our Naval Forces were also dispatched. Casualties of 116, 708, Wounded 205,690


I grew up knowing many WWI vets. I think that if the U.S. has "forgotten" wars, this is probably the largest.

I really didn't mean any disrespect I am a serving British soldier and have the highest respect for all soldiers.

Thank you for educating me, I suppose my knowledge of the Americans in WW1 isn't that great although the Americans were late again. (I know it's not the thread for this but) it just annoys me because the wars could of been over alot quicker with less bloodshed (I like to think anyway) the first WW started 1914 and the americans didnt come until 1917 and then late again in WW2 it took a massacre at pearl harbour to bring them into the war although there are rumours and speculation that the Americans only joined the war because the found new information that Germany was planning on taken Europe, south America then America itself and this was quite possible with Italy and japan on side, it just seems when America clicks it's fingers the British come running to help but it's a different story when it's the other way round.

Sorry guys rant over.

Great thread by the way OP very interesting and humbling read.

reply to post by simples


I see some of your argument there, however at the outbreak of the Second World War the American army was very small. It was only later on once it joined the war that a huge expansion began. As for the British, well we'd been defeated pretty much everywhere from Norway to Crete, to North Africa. Yes we had a victory at El Alamein, but if it wasn't for the United States entrance it would have been near impossible for us to win the war.

In the end each of the main allies, Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union all needed each other to win and we all did our part.

In the First World War when the U.S entered, much of it's equipment was supplied by the French and British, especially early on. Yes they came in late and were no doubt seen as brash and naive by the British and French who had been suffering in trench warfare for almost four years. But the Americans fought and shed blood in horrific circumstances. For that they have my respect.

reply to post by Kram09


Please don't get me wrong I am grateful for every American sole and any other nationality that has fought fir the greater good.

I may be wrong but you said Ther army was small many it was but the navy was huge.

Again may be wrong but didnt the Germans walk straight into France without a shot fired?

reply to post by simples


Don't worry, I understand you're not meaning to be disrespectful.

Yes, I believe the U.S navy was very large. The main thing the allies struggled for during the war was lack of landing craft (but that's another subject).

The Germans certainly got the superior of France and their defensive mentality in 1940. But Free French forces (those who had escaped France to continue to fight for the allies) still took part.

reply to post by Kram09


I love ATS you learn new things everyday.

I have a little bit mire info on the French not just cowards then, well some of them arnt.

WWI vet, Frank Buckles. Dead a few days ago.

Goodbye to another era in history. History is just a shadow of what really happened. Goodbye to a man that lived then and saw with his own eyes many of hte things we can only read about.

Sadly, much of what he knows dies with him and much of what we know is just like a picture - it only can tell you so much about what was going on. The details were inside his head. He couldn't possibly give us what we want - a true recollection like we were there ourselves.

Everytime someone dies we lose more history. It's just the limits of our capabilities at this time. It's sad. Wish I could give everyone an extra 50 years or unlimited health so we could better retain history. History is part and parcel of who we are. Losing it means it's more difficult to learn from our mistakes and to appreciate the many people that have touched this land.

Is it vain to want to hold onto our past? To want to value our ancestors and our family and friends? I mean, none of it is going to last. Why give meaning to temporary things. But we don't have much other choice do we? There's scant little to add meaning to this existence. All we really got is each other and the ideas we create and the mysterious universe around us. Beyond these things, all we can see is an endless changing sea that swallows up everything in its path.

Ever seen nothing? Or heard it? Or tasted it? Or touched it? Or smelled it? I didn't think so. It's not a mistake that the things that we give meaning to in life are bound by the laws of this universe.

Here's to increasing health and appreciation for all things. *cheers*

Originally posted by simples
I don't mean to be disrespectful to this guy as he's a very brave sole, but surly the US can't have that many WW1 vets as the Americans didn't really join the WW's till the dieing years of world war 2.

Late as always!

Well considering we have a memorial for the veterans of the Vietnam war and Korean war, and both had substantially lower American death toll then World War 1.....

A thread had just been created on the same topic.. where there was a bit of confusion regarding the "Last of the Last"...

There is one more..

There are two living verified veterans of World War I (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918). Both are from the Allies. The last Central Powers veteran, Franz Künstler of Austria-Hungary, died on 27 May 2008 at the age of 107. The total number of participating personnel is estimated by the Encyclopaedia Britannica at 65,038,810. There were approximately 9,750,103 military deaths during the conflict. Veterans, for this purpose, are defined as people who were members of the armed forces of one of the combatant nations up to and including the date of the Armistice. Other World War I-era veterans are listed separately. This policy may vary from the policy in actual use in some countries.

en.wikipedia.org...

And here is a list of the "Last" from each country;

The last surviving veteran of World War I per country is shown in the table below, along with any living veterans.

en.wikipedia.org...

Let's be sure to not forget them..