In 1919, more than 1400 Sioux City veterans of the Great War gathered to form Monahan Post No. 64 of the American Legion, named in honor of Private Edward Monahan of Sioux City, who had been the first man of the 168th Infantry Regiment killed in action in France. Private Monahan, in addition to giving his life, had distinguished himself in combat, having been mentioned in dispatches and also having been posthumously awarded the French Croix de Guerre Medal with Palm by the French government.