It took her 30 years to get her veteran’s pension
Despite her service and many achievements during the Civil War, Tubman had to wait three long decades before she received the pension she was owed. The official reason for this was that, while her wartime exploits for the Union were nothing short of legendary, there were no official records was of her service. This lack of compensation almost caused Tubman’s ruin.
In many instances, Tubman made financial sacrifices in order to carry out her work. This was especially true in the days she was helping slaves escape to safety. What’s more, by the 1860s, she having to take care of her elderly parents as well as herself. Thus, Tubman was almost destitute when she first applied for a veteran’s pension in the summer of 1865. She had numerous supporters, many of them very influential men. However, her appeals fell on deaf ears, with the lack of official documentation standing in the way of her and a steady income.
Finally, in 1890, with the death of her second husband, Tubman was able to receive a widow’s pension of $8 a month. But this wasn’t enough for her or her supporters. They kept campaigning and finally, in 1892, they succeeded. Congress passed a Bill granting Tubman a veteran’s pension of $25 a month in recognition for her services as a nurse during the Civil War. By this point, however, Tubman was almost 80 years old and had been forced to endure many years of financial suffering.