Idaho Veterans Posts

About Veterans Organizations in Idaho

A deep look at the history, oldest posts, membership process, and notable veterans connected to Idaho.

History of Veterans Organizations in Idaho

Idaho's veteran organizations have always been shaped by the state's rural character, mountainous geography, and strong tradition of citizen-soldier service through the Idaho National Guard. The American Legion Department of Idaho was chartered in 1919, with founding posts emerging in Boise, Pocatello, Twin Falls, and Lewiston as World War I doughboys returned to a state still very much in its frontier period. Idaho's military heritage stretches back to the Indian Wars of the late nineteenth century, when posts at Fort Boise, Fort Lapwai, and Fort Hall were active outposts of the U.S. Army.

World War I drew heavily from Idaho's farming and ranching communities, with the 41st Infantry Division absorbing thousands of Idaho draftees and volunteers. World War II transformed the state's military profile through the establishment of Mountain Home Air Force Base in 1942 (originally Mountain Home Army Air Field), Gowen Field in Boise as a B-24 training base, the Farragut Naval Training Station on Lake Pend Oreille that trained nearly 300,000 sailors during the war, and various smaller training facilities. The mountain warfare tradition runs deep in Idaho, with the 10th Mountain Division during World War II drawing veteran ski instructors and outdoorsmen from across Idaho's resort and backcountry communities. The Department of Idaho headquarters operates from Boise and oversees the state's districts spanning a geographically immense area from the Canadian border at Bonners Ferry to the Utah and Nevada lines in the south.

Idaho's posts are often the only veteran institutions for hundreds of square miles of rural country, and they function as community centers, dance halls, and informal town squares in places where the nearest competing entertainment venue may be an hour away on a winding mountain road. The Idaho Air National Guard at Gowen Field flies A-10s and has been a consistent source of returning veterans across the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.

Oldest and Most Historic Posts in Idaho

American Legion Post 1, the Boise Post, was Idaho's first chartered post in 1919 and remains one of the largest and most active in the state. The post operates a substantial clubhouse and has been a fixture of Boise civic life for over a century. Post 2 in Pocatello, the Bannock County Post, dates to 1919 and serves Eastern Idaho. Post 3 in Lewiston serves the Lewis-Clark Valley and the Nez Perce country of North Central Idaho.

Post 7 in Twin Falls anchors the Magic Valley and has long been a center of South Central Idaho veteran life. Post 14 in Coeur d'Alene serves the Idaho Panhandle. Post 31 in Idaho Falls grew rapidly with the postwar establishment of the National Reactor Testing Station, now the Idaho National Laboratory, which brought hundreds of military veterans into civilian nuclear engineering careers. Post 39 in Sandpoint, Post 27 in Caldwell, and Post 20 in Nampa round out the early major posts.

Many of Idaho's older posts have hosted American Legion Baseball programs that have been a fixture of small-town summer life for nearly a century, and several Idaho posts have produced players who went on to college and professional careers. Posts in remote parts of Idaho such as Salmon, McCall, and Bonners Ferry often consist of a small but determined membership that maintains the building, the Memorial Day ceremony at the local cemetery, and the Veterans Day program at the school.

VFW Posts in Idaho: A Closer Look

The VFW Department of Idaho operates from Boise and oversees roughly fifty active posts across the state. Idaho's VFW grew slowly through the early twentieth century but expanded rapidly after World War II, when Farragut alumni and B-24 trainees from Gowen Field returned to settle in the state, often choosing the rural and outdoor lifestyle Idaho offered. VFW Post 63 in Boise is one of the older Idaho posts. Post 4006 in Coeur d'Alene serves the Panhandle.

Post 735 in Pocatello and Post 4925 in Idaho Falls are among the more active in the eastern part of the state. Idaho VFW posts have been consistent advocates for rural veteran healthcare access, given that many Idaho veterans live hours from a VA medical facility, and the department has worked closely with the Boise VA Medical Center on community-based outpatient clinic expansion in places like Twin Falls, Burley, Salmon, and Mountain Home. The department's Voice of Democracy program produces strong rural state participation, and Idaho students have placed in national finalist rankings multiple times.

AMVETS, DAV, and Other Veterans Organizations in Idaho

AMVETS Department of Idaho is small but active, with posts in Boise, Pocatello, Idaho Falls, and Lewiston serving as the primary AMVETS centers. AMVETS in Idaho has focused on outreach to younger post-9/11 veterans and on emergency assistance programs that help rural veterans navigate the long distances to VA care. The Disabled American Veterans Department of Idaho operates a critical transportation network given the state's geography; veterans in remote counties often need to travel three or four hours each way to reach the Boise VA Medical Center, and DAV's Transportation Network volunteers log enormous mileage every year shuttling veterans to appointments. DAV Chapter 1 in Boise and Chapter 5 in Idaho Falls are among the most active.

Idaho DAV service officers handle a high volume of claims related to Cold War atomic exposure, given that thousands of military personnel rotated through the National Reactor Testing Station and many later developed conditions that required claims work decades after their service.

Idaho Veterans Posts by the Numbers

Idaho is home to approximately 130,000 to 140,000 veterans according to recent VA estimates, representing one of the higher per-capita veteran populations among Western states. The American Legion Department of Idaho maintains roughly 100 active posts with combined membership in the 12,000 to 15,000 range. The VFW Department of Idaho operates around 50 to 55 posts. Idaho hosts the Boise VA Medical Center plus community-based outpatient clinics in Caldwell, Twin Falls, Pocatello, Idaho Falls, Coeur d'Alene, Lewiston, Mountain Home, and Salmon.

The Idaho State Veterans Home system operates facilities in Boise, Pocatello, and Lewiston. The Idaho State Veterans Cemetery is in Boise. Idaho's active-duty military presence centers on Mountain Home Air Force Base, where roughly 5,000 personnel are assigned, plus the Idaho National Guard with units across the state.

How to Join a Veterans Post in Idaho

Joining the American Legion in Idaho requires honorable federal active-duty service since December 7, 1941, under the LEGION Act of 2019. Annual dues vary by post and typically run from $30 to $50. The VFW in Idaho requires combat-zone or hostile-fire-area service documented on a DD-214. AMVETS welcomes all honorably discharged veterans, Guard, and Reserve.

Idaho posts often welcome out-of-state members who own seasonal property or vacation in the state, particularly in resort communities like McCall, Sun Valley, and Coeur d'Alene where the year-round Legion population is supplemented by snowbird-style summer members. The Sons of the American Legion in Idaho is robust given the multi-generational ranching and farming families that have served continuously since World War I, and the Legion Riders chapters in Idaho run popular charity rides that take advantage of the state's spectacular mountain highways.

Notable Idaho Veterans in History

Idaho has produced several notable veterans whose service shaped the state and the country. Senator Frank Church, the longtime Democratic senator best known for the Church Committee that investigated CIA abuses in the 1970s, was an Army veteran of World War II who served in the China-Burma-India theater. Senator James McClure was a Navy veteran. Governor Cecil Andrus, who later served as Secretary of the Interior, was an Army veteran.

Lieutenant General William G. Boykin, a former Delta Force commander, has Idaho ties through retirement. Petty Officer Second Class Michael A. Monsoor, a SEAL killed in Iraq in 2006 and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, was not Idaho-born but is honored at Idaho posts because of his Western heritage.

Sergeant First Class Earl D. Plumlee, a Medal of Honor recipient for actions in Afghanistan in 2013, has Idaho connections. Colonel Gail Halvorsen, the Berlin Airlift's Candy Bomber who was Utah-born, made frequent appearances in Idaho through his retirement years. The 10th Mountain Division produced multiple Idaho veterans who returned home to develop the state's now-famous ski industry, and several Sun Valley founding figures were 10th Mountain alumni.

Frequently Asked Questions: Idaho Veterans Posts

Sources & Further Reading

• https://www.legion.org/
• https://www.vfw.org/
• https://www.amvets.org/
• https://veterans.idaho.gov/
• https://www.va.gov/
• https://www.mountainhome.af.mil/