Frank Buckles was born on February 1, 1901, in Bethany, Missouri. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on August 14, 1917, and was trained as an ambulance driver. Buckles served in England and France during World War I, from January 14, 1918, to the end of the war on November 11, 1918, and then remained in Europe transporting German POWs back to Germany until October 31, 1919. After returning to the United States, Cpl Buckles received an honorable discharge from the Army on November 12, 1919. Buckles worked as a civilian with several American shipping lines before being captured as a U.S. Merchant Marine during the fall of the Philippines by the Japanese in 1942. He spent the next three years as a Prisoner of War and was released in 1945. His time as a Merchant Marine later became official military service when President Ronald Reagan signed a new bill into law in 1988. In 2004, Buckles was awarded the French Legion of Honor for his service in World War I. Frank Buckles died on February 27, 2011, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. He was the last living American veteran that served in World War I.