After the Civil War, when the remnants of the Grand Union Army returned to their homes, the scars of the nation's bloodiest conflict made it a meager homecoming.

Ohio, the bread basket of the nation, was particularly hard hit. Farms that had lain fallow for years were overgrown; farming implements were rusted; there was no money to buy seeds for the new crop. Empty sleeves which had once held an arm or leg were common. And for those who did not return, a legacy of poverty and loss were all that remained for their widows and orphans.

For this reason, the state legislature of Ohio passed the Soldiers Relief Act in 1886, thus establishing the Veterans Service Commission (formerly the Soldiers Relief Commission). Its role was, as it now, to provide emergency relief and support services to veterans who served this country and to their family members and survivors.