The list gives name of unit and date and place of muster. I Veterans Bonus Cards, ca. These records do not show the amount of individual bonuses awarded. Some applications were disallowed and are so marked on the cards. Neither the original cards nor the applications for bonuses are extant.
Most information is typescript although there are some manuscript entries.
Bonus payments were first authorized under Chapter 872 of the Laws of 1920, which allowed bonds to be issued, upon agreement of the voters in the general election of 1920, with the money realized from the sale of the bonds to pay for the bonuses. The bonus program was administered by an unnamed commission, which was created by Chapter 315 of the Laws of 1921 to administer payments provided for by the previous law. It had the right to appoint deputies in each county, the right to subpoena witnesses and take testimony, and to adopt rules and regulations for distribution of the bonuses. It was to be abolished by executive order of the governor as soon as its purposes were accomplished, and its records turned over to the adjutant general. The bonus program was marked by constitutional, financial, and administrative problems.