Mill F 1 1 illl 1 1 IlHIIli TTfl i^niu AUEmJST 25th thru 28th 1952 NEW YORK CITY liifl I- — There’s No Substitute for Old Grand-Dad ou’ll never know how fine a bourbon can be Y until you try Old Grand-Dad — one of Kentucky’s finest whiskies. It goes into new charred white oak casks a superior whiskey. There it ripens until com- pletely matured. Then it is bottled in bond. Enjoy this superb whiskey’s smoothness, mellowness and heart-warming flavor soon. Then you will know why there’s no substitute for Old Grand-Dad "Head of the Bourbon Family.” The Old Grand-Dad Distillery Company Frankfort , Kentucky THIRTY-FOURTH HATIOHAL COHVENTION The American Legion August 25 — A ugust 28, 1952 New York City, New York ik La Societe des La Boutique des American Legion Quarante Hommes et Huit Chapeaux et Huit Chevaux Auxiliary Quarante Femmes Thirty-third Thirty-second Thirty-first Promenade Nationale National Convention Marche Nationale Preamble to the Constitution . of The American Legion OR God and Country, we associate ourselves F together for the following purposes: To up- hold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America; to maintain law and order; to foster and perpetuate a one hundred per cent Americanism; to preserve the memories and incidents of our associations in the Great Wars; to inculcate a sense of individual obligation to the community, state and nation; to combat the autocracy of both the classes and the masses; to make right the master of might; to promote peace and good will on earth; to safeguard and transmit to posterity the principles of justice, freedom, and democracy; to consecrate and sanctify our comradeship by our devotion to mutual helpfulness. DONALD R. WILSON National Commander THE AMERICAN LEGION Legionnaire HARRY S. TRUMAN President of the United States The Honorable THOMAS E. DEWEY Governor of New York Statc or New York Executive Chamber Albany Thomas E. Dewey Governor April 11, 1952 Honorable Donald R. Wilson National Commander The American Legion 1952 National Convention 500 Park Avenue New York 22, New York Dear Commander Wilson: I am delighted once more to welcome to New York State the 1952 National Convention of that great organization—The American Legion. All the people of the Empire State are glad you are coming and I know the people of New York City will greet you with open arms as familiar and well liked friends. The City and all its facilities will be at your disposal. I earnestly hope that while the Legionnaires are in our State they will linger long enough to visit some of New York’s fine beaches, our magnificent forest preserves, streams and lakes. We are proud of the Legion in New York as in the Nation, proud of its membership and of its leadership. The people have reason to be grateful to the Legion for its many activities contributing invaluably to the common good. I congratulate the Legion and add my sincere hopes that the 1952 Convention in New York may be the best and the happiest of them all. Sincerely yours, TED:RC 5 The Honorable VINCENT R. IMPELLITTERI Mayor, City of New York April 29, 1952 RH Hon. Donald R. Wilson, National Commander The American Legion 1952 National Convention Corporation 500 Park Avenue, New York 22, N. Y. Dear Commander Wilson: It is a happy privilege for me as a Legionnaire and as Chief Executive of our great city to extend a warm welcome to the officers and members of the American Legion who hold their 34th National Convention in our city August 24th to 28th, 1952. 1 am happy to note that this will be the third time our metropolis is being honored by this great national gathering of the American Legion, the Ameri- can Legion Auxiliary, the Forty and Eight, and Eight and Forty. 1 know that New York’s eight million citizens as well as the addi- tional millions in the adjoining metropolitan area will welcome wholeheartedly this great gathering of Legionnaires and their families from all over the nation—and the delegates and visitors from the world over. This meeting will be held at a most crucial time in our nation’s history with every American deeply interested and concerned with the action to he taken and the principles to be espoused by the American Legion. If a keynote is to be sounded for the forthcoming Convention none better can be given than your own recent words when you said, and 1 quote: “We who have had the honor of fighting, each in his own way, to preserve what we believe is our country’s destiny, are among those who believe it is righteous and just and good to be proud of America, and of her moral and material strength. We would see this strength reactivated to be used in the interest of good all over the world.” In closing, I can only say that New York City will leave nothing undone to provide for the comfort and the convenience of its guests so as to insure that this, the 34th Annual Convention, may be the most successful in the history of the American Legion. Sincerely yours, Mayor 6 JAMES V. DEMAREST MAURICE STEMBER Department Commander Department Adjutant THE AMERICAN LEGION Department of New York The Department of New York welcomes you. The hours when the mind is absorbing are the only hours when we really live, so that the longer you remain among attention engaging things, so much more is snatched from idle thought and so much more are you improved. The interesting City of New York will yield new thought at every step and in spite of its fast moving activities, you will find New York hospitable. Its crowds, its busy traffic, its vast business and Civic propensities all give way to reception time in New York. This is reception time. These are American reception days . your days . enjoy every moment of them for New York is truly an American City, a Legion City ... we know you will enjoy it. 7 NATIONAL OFFICERS OF FRANK R. KELLEY AUDLEY H. WARD Vice-Commander Vice-Commander THOMAS E. PARADINE Vice-Commander OSCAR B. ROHLFF ADOLPH F. BREMER Vice-Commander Vice-Commander 8 THE AMERICAN LEGION Vi ... NEAL GRIDER RALPH B. GREGG Treasurer Judge Advocate HENRY H. DUDLEY Adjutant -.'V. 0. G. BIRKELAND MONTE C. SANDLIN Chaplain Historian 9 RECIPIENTS OF THE AMERICAN LEGION DISTINGUISHED SERVICE MEDAL MARSHAL FERDINAND FOCH, of France GENERAL THEODORE ROOSEVELT, JR. Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in ( Posthumously ) —1945 World War 1—1921 ERNEST (Ernie) PYLE ADMIRAL DAVID EARL BEATTY War Correspondent Head of the British Navy during ( Posthumously ) — 1945 World War 1—1921 HONORABLE HENRY L. STIMSON GENERAL BARON JAQUES Secretary of War—1945 Commander-in-Chief of the Belgian Army in World War I—1921 ADMIRAL CHESTER W. NIMITZ —1945 GENERAL ARMANDO V. DIAZ Commander-in-Chief of the Italian Army during GENERAL DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER World War I— 1921 —1945 CHARLES BERTRAND, of France J. EDGAR HOOVER Founder-president of Fidac—1921 —1946 GENERAL J. PERSHING JOHN BOB HOPE Commander-in-Chief of the A.E.F. in —1946 World War I—1922 ADMIRAL R. E. COONTZ WILLIAM RANDOLPH HEARST —1946 of the U. S. Navy—1923 GENERAL JOSEF HALLER MAJOR GENERAL LEWIS B. HERSHEY of Poland—1923 —1946 IGNACE JAN PADEREWSKI CORDELL HULL former Premier of Poland— 1926 —1946 COMTE FRANCOIS MARIE ROBERT DEJEAN LT. GEN. WM. S. KNUDSEN of France—1927 —1947 LORD ALLENBY HONORABLE EDWARD MARTIN of Great Britain—1928 United States Senator —1947 JUDGE KENESAW MOUNTAIN LANDIS Commissioner of Baseball—1929 HONORABLE FRED M. VINSON Chief Justice, U. S. Supreme Court ADMIRAL W. S. SIMS —1947 of the U. S. Navy—1930 PRESIDENT HARRY S. TRUMAN GENERAL DOUGLAS MacARTHUR —1949 —1942 GEORGE HERMAN (Babe) RUTH GENERAL GEORGE C. MARSHALL ( Posthumously) —1949 —1943 GENERAL FRANK PARKER ADMIRAL ERNEST J. KING ( Posthumously) —1949 —1943 CHARLES F. JOHNSON, JR. FRANK KNOX —1950 ( Posthumously —1944 ) MILTON A. RECKFORD HENRY FORD —1950 —1944 GENERAL H. H. ARNOLD MRS. EDITH NOURSE RODGERS —1944 —1950 FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT GENERAL CHARLES PELOT SUMMERALL ( Posthumously —1945 —1951 ) 10 PAST NATIONAL COMMANDERS Bennett C. Clark Edward A. Hayes Lynn U. Stambaugh Franklin D’Olier Frank N. Belgrano, Jr. Roane Waring Hanford MacNider Ray Murphy Warren H. Atherton Alvin M. Owsley Harry W. Colmery Edward N. Scheiberling John R. Quinn Daniel J. Doherty John Stelle Paul V. McNutt Stephen F. Chadwick Paul H. Griffith Henry L. Stevens, Jr. Raymond J. Kelly James F. O’Neil Louis Johnson Milo J. Warner Perry Brown George . Craig Erie Cocke, Jr. k ll . Si§i specially elegant . uncommon. WEBSTER mmHIRAM Ww/a ggl ^^BOURBON y/Jhty fpijmf m' fcSvi fji 1 &6cruz> g&nM \me os a stratpdt Bourdon wdtsdey, e/efant m taste, uncemmnt/j'ooot- afflra/n M/ter wtisteof. ///raw H4w£er & Sons /nc., Peona. ///. 90.4 Proof 12 it it it it it OFFICIAL PROGRAM THIRTY-FOURTH ANNUAL NATIONAL CONVENTION THE AMERICAN LEGION MONDAY, AUGUST 18, 1952 Opening of National Headquarters, Hotel Statler SCHEDULE OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS Emblem Committee 9:30 A. M., August 21-23, Conference Room 4, Hotel Statler National Americanism Commission 9:30 A. M., August 22-23, Room 202, School* Executive Section, Child Welfare 9:30 A. M., August 22-23, Room 229, School* Commission Executive Section, Economic Commission 9:30 A. M., August 22-23, Room 525, School* Executive Section, Foreign Relations Commission 9:30 A. M., August 22-23, Room 527, School* Executive Section, Internal Affairs Commission 9:30 A.