Beginning the Welfare State: Civil War Veterans' Pensions

Abstract

The following essay was written while Rothbard was working on “Origins of the Welfare State in America,” which was originally published posthumously in the Journal of Libertarian Studies in 1996 (Rothbard 1996). “Origins” was included as Chapter 11 in The Progressive Era (Rothbard 2017). The draft pages of “Beginning the Welfare State” label it as Section 4. Rothbard most likely took it out and rewrote “Origins” so it would focus more on the Progressive Era intellectuals and reformers in the early-twentieth century. It was referenced but not included in The Progressive Era due to space constraints (Rothbard 2017, 153). It is published here for the first time. In this short but highly illuminating essay, Rothbard describes one of the first significant welfare programs in America: pensions to Union veterans. He documents the pro-pension legislation pushed by the Republicans, who supported it to cement a significant interest group to their party and also spend the federal budget surplus caused by their high tariff protectionist policies. Fighting a rearguard battle was President Grover Cleveland (1885-1889, 1893-1897) and his wavering Democratic congressional allies. The 1890 Dependent and Disability Pension Act was an important step in paving the way for the welfare reforms of the Progressive Era and New Deal. For a recent analysis of Civil War pensions that is similar to Rothbard’s, see Cogan (2017, 31–53). — Patrick Newman