Charles R. Forbes
Encyclopedia
Charles Robert Forbes was appointed the first Director of the Veterans' Bureau by President Warren G. Harding
on August 9, 1921 and served until February 28, 1923. Caught for Army desertion in 1900, he went on to serve in the military and was a decorated World War I
veteran. He first became active in politics in the Pacific Northwest
. In 1912, Forbes moved to Hawaii
and served as chairman on various federal commissions. While Senator Warren G. Harding
was on vacation in Hawaii the two met by chance and became friends. After the 1920 U.S. Presidential election, President Harding appointed Forbes director to the newly created Veterans Bureau, a powerful position in charge of millions of dollars in government expenditures and supplies.
His tenure as the first Veterans Bureau Director was characterized by corruption and scandal. Forbes was considered the "dashing playboy" of Washington and a favorite of President Harding. Having returned to the United States
after fleeing to Europe
in 1923, he was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Government and sent to federal prison in 1926, where he was cell mates with Frederick Cook
, the person who is often credited with being the first to reach the North Pole
. Forbes was released 8 months later in 1927. He died in 1952.
. As a child, he and his parents emigrated to America
and the family lived in New York
and Boston
. When Forbes was 16 years old he joined the Marines as a musician and was eventually stationed in the Washington Navy Yard
. Trained as an engineer, Forbes attended Philips Exeter Academy, Cooper Institute in New York
, Columbia University
, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
. He enlisted in the Army in 1900; however, two months later he was charged with desertion. He was found, sent back to the Army, and restored to duty without a trial. Forbes went on to serve in the Philippines
after completing his enlistment, and was honorably discharged from the Army in the rank of Sergeant First Class
in 1908.
After leaving the Army, Forbes engaged in construction work in the Pacific Northwest
, moving to Seattle
. He became active for the first time in state politics. He got married in Seattle to his wife Katherine and started a family having one daughter, Marcia. In 1912, Forbes and family moved to Hawaii
, at that time a United States
territory, and worked at the Pearl Harbor
naval station as an engineer for the next five years. While in Hawaii, he served in four federal government appointments as Commissioner of Public Works, Chairman of the Public Service Commission, Chairman of the Harbor Commission and Chairman of the Reclamation Commission appointed by President Woodrow Wilson
. During this time in Hawaii, Forbes became acquainted with then Senator Warren G. Harding
, who was on vacation with his wife at the time, a meeting that would eventually change both of their lives. His charismatic personality and hospitality created a positive impression with Harding, and soon the two became good friends. Forbes wife became close friends with Mrs. Harding
.
in 1917, Forbes enlisted again into the U.S. Army. He served notably overseas in France in the United States
41st and 33rd Infantry Divisions. He was awarded both the international Croix de Guerre
Medal and the United States Distinguished Service Medal
. Forbes' final promotion was to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel
. After World War I, Forbes returned to Washington from France
and continued his work in the construction business in Tacoma. He worked his way up to Vice President of the Hurley-Mason Construction Company.
was running for President in 1920, he traveled to Marion
, Ohio
and swung the Washington delegate vote for Harding at the 1920 Republican presidential convention held in Chicago
. Harding would go on to win the Election of 1920 with the motto for America to "return to normalcy"; giving businesses tariff protection and tax relief, and keeping America out of foreign affairs.
, a board that controlled vast amounts of government shipping resources to private shippers. President Harding, however, denied him the position and instead appointed Forbes to the Bureau of War Risk Insurance on April 28, 1921. Forbes salary at the War Risk Bureau was $10,000 a year. On August 9, 1921 Congress passed what was known as the "Sweet Bill" creating the Office of the Veterans Bureau. After World War I, thousands of wounded and disabled veterans did not have adequate facilities for proper care and needed job skills. The Veterans Bureau was created to remedy this dilemma for the World War I veterans who desperately needed medical attention, hospitals, and employment. Across the country there were fourteen regional offices that were semi-independent from Washington D.C. Bureau. Congress awarded the Veterans Bureau millions of dollars in expenditures to take care of the needs of the veterans. In August 1921, President Harding appointed Forbes the first Director of the Veterans Bureau. Forbes controlled $500,000,000 (5.99 billion 2009)
a year in government expenditures for the World War I veterans. Forbes wife Katherine had direct access to the White House
, having been given special privileges under Mrs. Harding's authority.
With millions of dollars at his disposal, Forbes hired 30,000 new workers to the Veterans Bureau, many who were personal friends to Forbes. The Veterans Bureau under Forbes was overstaffed and many appointed agents looked for means to justify their paid positions. During his tenure as the first Director of the Veterans' Bureau, Forbes ignored the needs of the wounded veterans. During the less than two years Forbes held this position, he embezzled approximately $225 million, mainly in connection with the building of veterans' hospitals, from selling hospital supplies intended for the Bureau, and from kickbacks from contractors. The budget for the Veteran's Bureau during his tenure was $1.3 billion in total. Forbes had rejected thousands of legitimate claims by Veterans.
Although 300,000 soldiers had been wounded in combat, Forbes had only allowed 47,000 claims for disability insurance
, while many were denied compensation for reasons that Congress called "split hairs". Even fewer veterans received any vocational training under Forbes' direction of the Bureau. According to the Charleston Gazette, Forbes toured with his contractor friends to the Pacific Coast, known as "Joy-Rides", inspecting veteran hospital construction sites. Forbes and his contractor associates allegedly indulged in parties and drinking. Forbes and corrupt contractors developed a secret code in order to communicate insider information and ensure government contracts. According to congressional testimony, in Chicago
, on one of his many inspection trips, Forbes gambled and took a $5,000 bribe from contractor J. W. Thompson and E. H. Mortimer at the Drake Hotel
to secure $17,000,000 veteran hospital construction contracts. Mortimer was the middleman man who had handed Forbes the bribe in one of the rooms at the Drake. Forbes said the $5,000 payment was a loan. Mortimer stated that Forbes had an affair with Mortimer's wife while on the inspection tours. After Forbes returned from his inspection tours he began to sell hospital supplies at severely discounted prices. According to a Highbeam Business report, he sold nearly $7,000,000 of much needed hospitals supplies for $600,000, a fraction of their worth. Forbes was suspected of receiving kickbacks from contractors. When President Harding ordered Forbes to stop, Forbes insubordinately disobeyed and kept selling supplies.
before the Senate committee, Forbes renounced involvement in illegal activities. Mortimer provided damaging information that Forbes took a $5,000 payment in Chicago and got kickbacks for land deals and building contracts for Veteran hospitals. Forbes was indicted and tried by jury in 1924.
inspection tours. Mrs. Forbes said that her husband's cruel treatment caused her to be in poor health. The judge ordered that Forbes pay alimony
; $75 dollars a month to Mrs. Forbes for two years and $75 dollars a month to their 10 year old daughter, Marcia, until she turned 18. Forbes divorce proceedings, that took place during the Congressional investigation into corruption at the Veterans Bureau, were held in secret from the public until the divorce was final.
federal penitentiary. Forbes was prisoner number 25021. On entering prison Forbes said, "I don't suppose any prison is a pleasant place to go, but I shall try to make the best of it." Forbes had appealed his trial, however, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld his conviction.
, his cell mate at Leavenworth, discovered the North Pole
.
, published December 4, 1927 that alleged Harding was "duped" by his appointees and cabinet known as the Ohio Gang
. He said to have found Jess Smith
picking up $70,000 in $1,000 bills scattered on a Justice Department office floor. Smith was an aid to President Harding's U.S. Attorney General Harry Daugherty. While he helped Smith pick up the money from the floor, Smith told him the money was Daugherty's. Forbes said that the ability to buy narcotics was rampant at Atlanta and Leavenworth federal prisons while Daugherty was Attorney General. Forbes stated that Harding's personal physician, Charles E. Sawyer
, was a "pernicious meddler". Forbes made a blanket statement that President Harding had not profited in anyway from the scandals during the Harding Administration. Forbes claimed that President Harding was "excessively loyal" with his friends, to a fault. At a poker game in the White House, Forbes said that Harding would remove a $1,000 fine imposed on prize fighter Jack Johnson
who had been released from Leavenworth Penitentiary in 1921.
On December 16, 1927, after the publication of his New York World article, Forbes testified before a grand jury in Kansas City
that concerned his statement in the article that alleged narcotics was easily obtained at USP Leavenworth
. Forbes had also stated in the article that Leavenworth warden, E.B. White, was understaffed and that in turn allowed the purchase of narcotics to be readily available in the prison. After Forbes' lengthy several hour testimony before the grand jury, he said he was sworn to secrecy and would not make a statement to the press.
in Washington D.C. at the age of 74 on April 10, 1952 after a long illness and was interred at Arlington National Cemetery
. He was survived by his wife, Katherine T. Forbes, and one daughter, Marcia Forbes, who had married Fred Barry of Hatboro
, Pennsylvania
. The Forbes corruption at the Veterans Bureau was one of the many scandals involving the Harding administration and the Ohio Gang
.
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
on August 9, 1921 and served until February 28, 1923. Caught for Army desertion in 1900, he went on to serve in the military and was a decorated World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
veteran. He first became active in politics in the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
. In 1912, Forbes moved to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
and served as chairman on various federal commissions. While Senator Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
was on vacation in Hawaii the two met by chance and became friends. After the 1920 U.S. Presidential election, President Harding appointed Forbes director to the newly created Veterans Bureau, a powerful position in charge of millions of dollars in government expenditures and supplies.
His tenure as the first Veterans Bureau Director was characterized by corruption and scandal. Forbes was considered the "dashing playboy" of Washington and a favorite of President Harding. Having returned to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
after fleeing to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in 1923, he was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Government and sent to federal prison in 1926, where he was cell mates with Frederick Cook
Frederick Cook
Frederick Albert Cook was an American explorer and physician, noted for his claim of having reached the North Pole on April 21, 1908. This would have been a year before April 6, 1909, the date claimed by Robert Peary....
, the person who is often credited with being the first to reach the North Pole
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
. Forbes was released 8 months later in 1927. He died in 1952.
Early life
Forbes was born February 14, 1878 in ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. As a child, he and his parents emigrated to America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the family lived in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. When Forbes was 16 years old he joined the Marines as a musician and was eventually stationed in the Washington Navy Yard
Washington Navy Yard
The Washington Navy Yard is the former shipyard and ordnance plant of the United States Navy in Southeast Washington, D.C. It is the oldest shore establishment of the U.S. Navy...
. Trained as an engineer, Forbes attended Philips Exeter Academy, Cooper Institute in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
. He enlisted in the Army in 1900; however, two months later he was charged with desertion. He was found, sent back to the Army, and restored to duty without a trial. Forbes went on to serve in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
after completing his enlistment, and was honorably discharged from the Army in the rank of Sergeant First Class
Sergeant First Class
Sergeant First Class is the seventh enlisted rank in the U.S. Army, above Staff Sergeant and below Master Sergeant and First Sergeant, and is the first senior non-commissioned officer rank...
in 1908.
Pacific Northwest and Hawaii
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
, moving to Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
. He became active for the first time in state politics. He got married in Seattle to his wife Katherine and started a family having one daughter, Marcia. In 1912, Forbes and family moved to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, at that time a United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
territory, and worked at the Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
naval station as an engineer for the next five years. While in Hawaii, he served in four federal government appointments as Commissioner of Public Works, Chairman of the Public Service Commission, Chairman of the Harbor Commission and Chairman of the Reclamation Commission appointed by President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
. During this time in Hawaii, Forbes became acquainted with then Senator Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
, who was on vacation with his wife at the time, a meeting that would eventually change both of their lives. His charismatic personality and hospitality created a positive impression with Harding, and soon the two became good friends. Forbes wife became close friends with Mrs. Harding
Florence Harding
Florence Mabel Kling "Flossie" Harding , wife of President Warren G...
.
World War I
After the United States entered World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in 1917, Forbes enlisted again into the U.S. Army. He served notably overseas in France in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
41st and 33rd Infantry Divisions. He was awarded both the international Croix de Guerre
Croix de guerre
The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
Medal and the United States Distinguished Service Medal
Distinguished Service Medal (United States)
The Distinguished Service Medal is the highest non-valorous military and civilian decoration of the United States military which is issued for exceptionally meritorious service to the government of the United States in either a senior government service position or as a senior officer of the United...
. Forbes' final promotion was to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
. After World War I, Forbes returned to Washington from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and continued his work in the construction business in Tacoma. He worked his way up to Vice President of the Hurley-Mason Construction Company.
Harding Campaign 1920
When Forbes found out his good friend Warren G. HardingWarren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
was running for President in 1920, he traveled to Marion
Marion, Ohio
Marion is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Marion County. The municipality is located in north-central Ohio, approximately north of Columbus....
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and swung the Washington delegate vote for Harding at the 1920 Republican presidential convention held in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Harding would go on to win the Election of 1920 with the motto for America to "return to normalcy"; giving businesses tariff protection and tax relief, and keeping America out of foreign affairs.
War Risk and Veterans' Bureaus
Initially, Forbes desperately tried to be appointed chairman of the United States Shipping BoardUnited States Shipping Board
The United States Shipping Board was established as an emergency agency by the Shipping Act , 7 September 1916. It was formally organized 30 January 1917. It was sometimes referred to as the War Shipping Board.http://www.gwpda.org/wwi-www/Hurley/bridgeTC.htm | The Bridge To France by Edward N....
, a board that controlled vast amounts of government shipping resources to private shippers. President Harding, however, denied him the position and instead appointed Forbes to the Bureau of War Risk Insurance on April 28, 1921. Forbes salary at the War Risk Bureau was $10,000 a year. On August 9, 1921 Congress passed what was known as the "Sweet Bill" creating the Office of the Veterans Bureau. After World War I, thousands of wounded and disabled veterans did not have adequate facilities for proper care and needed job skills. The Veterans Bureau was created to remedy this dilemma for the World War I veterans who desperately needed medical attention, hospitals, and employment. Across the country there were fourteen regional offices that were semi-independent from Washington D.C. Bureau. Congress awarded the Veterans Bureau millions of dollars in expenditures to take care of the needs of the veterans. In August 1921, President Harding appointed Forbes the first Director of the Veterans Bureau. Forbes controlled $500,000,000 (5.99 billion 2009)
a year in government expenditures for the World War I veterans. Forbes wife Katherine had direct access to the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, having been given special privileges under Mrs. Harding's authority.
Veterans' Bureau tenure
Although 300,000 soldiers had been wounded in combat, Forbes had only allowed 47,000 claims for disability insurance
Disability insurance
Disability Insurance, often called DI or disability income insurance, is a form of insurance that insures the beneficiary's earned income against the risk that a disability will make working uncomfortable , painful , or impossible...
, while many were denied compensation for reasons that Congress called "split hairs". Even fewer veterans received any vocational training under Forbes' direction of the Bureau. According to the Charleston Gazette, Forbes toured with his contractor friends to the Pacific Coast, known as "Joy-Rides", inspecting veteran hospital construction sites. Forbes and his contractor associates allegedly indulged in parties and drinking. Forbes and corrupt contractors developed a secret code in order to communicate insider information and ensure government contracts. According to congressional testimony, in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, on one of his many inspection trips, Forbes gambled and took a $5,000 bribe from contractor J. W. Thompson and E. H. Mortimer at the Drake Hotel
Drake Hotel (Chicago)
The Drake Hotel, 140 East Walton Place, Chicago, Illinois, is a luxury full-service hotel, located downtown on the lake side of Michigan Avenue two blocks north of the John Hancock Center and a block south of Oak Street Beach at the top of the Magnificent Mile.Overlooking Lake Michigan, it was...
to secure $17,000,000 veteran hospital construction contracts. Mortimer was the middleman man who had handed Forbes the bribe in one of the rooms at the Drake. Forbes said the $5,000 payment was a loan. Mortimer stated that Forbes had an affair with Mortimer's wife while on the inspection tours. After Forbes returned from his inspection tours he began to sell hospital supplies at severely discounted prices. According to a Highbeam Business report, he sold nearly $7,000,000 of much needed hospitals supplies for $600,000, a fraction of their worth. Forbes was suspected of receiving kickbacks from contractors. When President Harding ordered Forbes to stop, Forbes insubordinately disobeyed and kept selling supplies.
Resignation
When President Harding found out Forbes had disobeyed a direct order to stop selling hospital supplies he summoned him to the White House in January 1923. He pleaded with Harding to allow him to go to Europe to settle family matters. Harding allowed him to flee to Europe only on the condition he would resign from the Veterans Bureau. While in Europe, he voluntarily resigned from office on February 15, 1923. When Forbes took Elias H. Mortimer's wife to Europe with him, Mortimer decided to testify against him in a Congressional investigation that started on March 2, 1923. Upon his return from Europe, Forbes visited President Harding at the White House. The six foot tall President grabbed Forbes by the throat and began violently shaking him "as a dog would a rat". Forbes was saved from this attack when a guest who had an appointment with the President interrupted the altercation. President Harding was angered over Forbes' duplicity in stopping the Perryville shipments. The Senate investigation revealed Forbes had left 200,000 unopened pieces of mail from veterans at the Bureau. BelligerentBelligerent
A belligerent is an individual, group, country or other entity which acts in a hostile manner, such as engaging in combat. Belligerent comes from Latin, literally meaning "to wage war"...
before the Senate committee, Forbes renounced involvement in illegal activities. Mortimer provided damaging information that Forbes took a $5,000 payment in Chicago and got kickbacks for land deals and building contracts for Veteran hospitals. Forbes was indicted and tried by jury in 1924.
Family neglect and divorce
On October 4, 1923 Forbes and his wife, Katherine Forbes, were formally divorced at a Seattle court house. Katherine's attorney, Eugene Mecham, stated that Forbes had overly neglected their home life while he was traveling on his Pacific Coast hospitalHospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
inspection tours. Mrs. Forbes said that her husband's cruel treatment caused her to be in poor health. The judge ordered that Forbes pay alimony
Alimony
Alimony is a U.S. term denoting a legal obligation to provide financial support to one's spouse from the other spouse after marital separation or from the ex-spouse upon divorce...
; $75 dollars a month to Mrs. Forbes for two years and $75 dollars a month to their 10 year old daughter, Marcia, until she turned 18. Forbes divorce proceedings, that took place during the Congressional investigation into corruption at the Veterans Bureau, were held in secret from the public until the divorce was final.
Trial, conviction, and prison sentence
Forbes was prosecuted and convicted of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Government, fined $10,000, and sentenced to a prison term of two years. He was put in prison on March 21, 1926. He served one year, eight months and six days at the LeavenworthUnited States Penitentiary, Leavenworth
The United States Penitentiary , Leavenworth was the largest maximum security federal prison in the United States from 1903 until 2005. It became a medium security prison in 2005.It is located in Leavenworth, Kansas...
federal penitentiary. Forbes was prisoner number 25021. On entering prison Forbes said, "I don't suppose any prison is a pleasant place to go, but I shall try to make the best of it." Forbes had appealed his trial, however, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld his conviction.
Prison release
On November 26, 1927 Forbes was released from Leavenworth Penitentiary. He stated after his release that he would make sure that Harding's legacy would be exonerated. He said he would prove that Dr. Frederick CookFrederick Cook
Frederick Albert Cook was an American explorer and physician, noted for his claim of having reached the North Pole on April 21, 1908. This would have been a year before April 6, 1909, the date claimed by Robert Peary....
, his cell mate at Leavenworth, discovered the North Pole
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
.
New York World article
After being released from prison, in an effort to exonerate President Harding, Forbes wrote an article for the New York WorldNew York World
The New York World was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers...
, published December 4, 1927 that alleged Harding was "duped" by his appointees and cabinet known as the Ohio Gang
Ohio Gang
The Ohio Gang was a group of politicians and industry leaders who came to be associated with Warren G. Harding, the twenty-ninth President of the United States of America.-Background:...
. He said to have found Jess Smith
Jess Smith
Jesse W. Smith also known as Jess Smith, was a member of President Warren G. Harding's Ohio Gang. He was born and raised in Washington Court House, Ohio, where he became a friend of Harry M. Daugherty. There, Daugherty helped him to become the successful owner of a department store...
picking up $70,000 in $1,000 bills scattered on a Justice Department office floor. Smith was an aid to President Harding's U.S. Attorney General Harry Daugherty. While he helped Smith pick up the money from the floor, Smith told him the money was Daugherty's. Forbes said that the ability to buy narcotics was rampant at Atlanta and Leavenworth federal prisons while Daugherty was Attorney General. Forbes stated that Harding's personal physician, Charles E. Sawyer
Charles E. Sawyer
Charles Elmer Sawyer, also known as Dr. C. E. Sawyer , was a homeopathic physician who is blamed for giving a false diagnosis of U.S. President Warren G. Harding that led to Harding's premature death....
, was a "pernicious meddler". Forbes made a blanket statement that President Harding had not profited in anyway from the scandals during the Harding Administration. Forbes claimed that President Harding was "excessively loyal" with his friends, to a fault. At a poker game in the White House, Forbes said that Harding would remove a $1,000 fine imposed on prize fighter Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson (boxer)
John Arthur Johnson , nicknamed the “Galveston Giant,” was an American boxer. At the height of the Jim Crow era, Johnson became the first African American world heavyweight boxing champion...
who had been released from Leavenworth Penitentiary in 1921.
On December 16, 1927, after the publication of his New York World article, Forbes testified before a grand jury in Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
that concerned his statement in the article that alleged narcotics was easily obtained at USP Leavenworth
United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth
The United States Penitentiary , Leavenworth was the largest maximum security federal prison in the United States from 1903 until 2005. It became a medium security prison in 2005.It is located in Leavenworth, Kansas...
. Forbes had also stated in the article that Leavenworth warden, E.B. White, was understaffed and that in turn allowed the purchase of narcotics to be readily available in the prison. After Forbes' lengthy several hour testimony before the grand jury, he said he was sworn to secrecy and would not make a statement to the press.
Illness and Death
In October 1949, Forbes had undergone a major operation. He died at the Walter Reed HospitalWalter Reed Army Medical Center
The Walter Reed Army Medical Center was the United States Army's flagship medical center until 2011. Located on 113 acres in Washington, D.C., it served more than 150,000 active and retired personnel from all branches of the military...
in Washington D.C. at the age of 74 on April 10, 1952 after a long illness and was interred at Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
. He was survived by his wife, Katherine T. Forbes, and one daughter, Marcia Forbes, who had married Fred Barry of Hatboro
Hatboro, Pennsylvania
Hatboro is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,360 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hatboro is located at ....
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. The Forbes corruption at the Veterans Bureau was one of the many scandals involving the Harding administration and the Ohio Gang
Ohio Gang
The Ohio Gang was a group of politicians and industry leaders who came to be associated with Warren G. Harding, the twenty-ninth President of the United States of America.-Background:...
.