George Columbus Barnhardt

Last updated • 3 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
George Barnhardt
111-SC-44851 - NARA - 55248464-cropped.jpg
George C. Barnhardt as a brigadier general in Prüm, 1919.
Born(1868-12-28)December 28, 1868
Gold Hill, North Carolina, United States
DiedDecember 10, 1930(1930-12-10) (aged 61)
Fort Bliss, Texas, U.S.
Burial Place
AllegianceFlag of the United States.svg  United States
Service/branchFlag of the United States Army.svg  United States Army
Years of service1892−1930
Rank US-O7 insignia.svg Brigadier General
Service number 0-400
Unit ArmyCAVBranchPlaque.gif Cavalry Branch
Commands 28th Regiment
2nd Brigade
178th Brigade
6th Cavalry Regiment
1st Cavalry Division
Wars Spanish–American War
China Relief Expedition
World War I
Awards Distinguished Service Medal
Croix de Guerre with Palm (France)
Legion of Honor (Officer) (France)
Spouse(s)Florence Rice “Floy” Rodman (m. 1895–1930, his death)
Children1

George Columbus Barnhardt (December 28, 1868 – December 10, 1930) was a United States Army officer who served during World War I. [1] He attained the rank of brigadier general, and was best known for his command of 28th Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 178th Brigade, 6th Cavalry Regiment, and 1st Cavalry Division.

Contents

Early life

Barnhardt was born in Gold Hill, North Carolina on December 28, 1868, a son of Marshall Lank Barnhardt and Sarah Pines (Dunlap) Barnhardt. In June 1892, he graduated number seventeen of sixty-two from the United States Military Academy. [2] Several of his fellow classmates included future general officers, such as Charles Pelot Summerall, Tracy Campbell Dickson, Julian Robert Lindsey, William Ruthven Smith, James Ancil Shipton, Louis Chapin Covell, Preston Brown, George Blakely, John M. Palmer, Frank W. Coe, Howard Russell Hickok, Robert Mearns, Henry Howard Whitney, William Chamberlaine, John E. Woodward and Peter Weimer Davison.

Military career

Barnhardt was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Sixth Cavalry and served at Fort McKinney, New York, from September 30, 1892, to October 2, 1894.

During the Spanish–American War, he commanded a cavalry troop in the Santiago campaign. After the war, he spent two years at Fort Leavenworth, in Kansas and then participated in the China Relief Expedition, followed by four years in the Philippines.

From 1907 to 1909, he was in Cuba and from 1909 to 1912 was adjutant of the 15th Cavalry. Barnhardt then did General Staff duty from 1913 to 1916 and was on the Mexican border. In 1916, he was also serving with the Quartermaster Corps. He commanded the 329th Infantry at Camp Sherman, in Ohio, and was in France with the American Expeditionary Force after the American entry into World War I.

On August 1, 1918, he was promoted to brigadier general of the national army and assigned the 178th Brigade in France and Germany. From 1921 to 1925, after arriving back in the United States, Barnhardt was a General Staff colonel, and from 1925 to 1927 he commanded the Sixth Cavalry. He also commanded the Military District of Washington from July to September 1927, and his last assignment was the command of the 22d Infantry Brigade in Hawaii. [2]

Awards

Barnhardt was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal from the United States, as well as the Croix de Guerre with Palm and the Legion of Honor (Officer) from France. [1] [3] The citation for his Army DSM reads:

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Army Distinguished Service Medal to Brigadier General George Columbus Barnhardt, United States Army, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished services to the Government of the United States, in a duty of great responsibility during World War I. As Commander of the 28th Infantry, General Barnhardt handled his regiment so brilliantly under severe conditions during the St. Mihiel offensive, 12 and 13 September 1818, and during the battle of the Meuse-Argonne from 1 to 11 October 1918, that the regiment demonstrated an unusually high degree of efficiency and morale. He repeatedly displayed superior tactical judgment, and by his exceptional ability, leadership, and devotion to duty, he effectively executed the most difficult missions assigned to his regiment. Later, in command of the 2d Infantry Brigade and then the 178th Infantry Brigade, he again displayed high efficiency and military attainments, thereby rendering with all his commands important services to the American Expeditionary Forces.

Death and legacy

Barnhardt died at Ft. Bliss on December 10, 1930. [4] [lower-alpha 1] He was temporarily interred at Concordia Cemetery in El Paso, and permanently interred at West Point Cemetery. [5]

Notes

  1. Davis gives an incorrect death date of May 14, 1924. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Grunert</span> United States Army general

George Grunert was a United States Army cavalry officer who worked his way up through the ranks from private to retirement as a lieutenant general. His 47-year career extended from the Spanish–American War to the end of World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Moore</span> United States Army post outside Columbus, Georgia

Fort Moore is a United States Army post in the Columbus, Georgia area. Located on Georgia's border with Alabama, Fort Moore supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees on a daily basis. As a power projection platform, the post can deploy combat-ready forces by air, rail, and highway for their designated mission. Fort Moore is the home of the United States Army Maneuver Center of Excellence, the United States Army Armor School, United States Army Infantry School, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, elements of the 75th Ranger Regiment, the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade, and other tenant units.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Pelot Summerall</span> 12th Chief of Staff of the United States Army

General Charles Pelot Summerall was a senior United States Army officer. He commanded the 1st Infantry Division in World War I, was Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1926 to 1930, and was President of The Citadel between 1931 and 1953.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Ross McCoy</span> United States Army general

Frank Ross McCoy was a United States Army officer. He served in the Philippines, during World War I, and led an American relief mission to Tokyo after the 1923 earthquake. He initially retired from the military in 1938, though was recalled to service in 1941 at the start of World War II, where he served on the Roberts Commission. In his civilian career, he was president of the Foreign Policy Association and chairman of the Far Eastern Commission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Dudley Rhodes</span> United States Marine Corps general (1865–1948)

Charles Dudley Rhodes was a United States Army major general. He was a prominent commander of cavalry units from the Indian Wars through World War I, and was a lecturer and author.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George H. Cameron</span> United States Army general (1861–1944)

Major General George Hamilton Cameron was a United States Army officer who had a military career spanning over forty years, at the end of which he attained the rank of major general. Despite serving in numerous conflicts, perhaps his most notable service came in the final years of World War I, where he served as the first commander of the 4th Division, which he later commanded on the Western Front in mid-1918, before being promoted to the command of V Corps, which he led during the short Battle of Saint-Mihiel and then in the early stages of the Meuse–Argonne offensive, the largest battle in the U.S. Army's history, before he was suddenly relieved of his command.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Herman Albright</span> U.S. Army brigadier general

Frank Herman Albright was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, World War I, he attained the rank of brigadier general, and was most notable for his First World War command of the 151st Infantry Brigade and the 56th Infantry Brigade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Gerhardt (United States Army officer)</span> United States Army general

Brigadier General Charles Gerhardt was a United States Army officer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He served in several conflicts, including the Sioux Wars and World War I. He is the father of Charles H. Gerhardt, who also served as an army general.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian Robert Lindsey</span> United States Army general

Major General Julian Robert Lindsey was a United States Army cavalry officer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He served in the China Relief Expedition, the Pancho Villa Expedition and commanded a regiment, and later a brigade, in World War I. Sergeant Alvin York, perhaps the most well known American soldier of World War I, also served in Lindsey's brigade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George King Hunter</span> American brigadier general (born 1855, died 1940)

George King Hunter was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the American Indian Wars, Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, and World War I, he was a recipient of the Silver Star and attained the rank of Brigadier General.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Payne Jackson</span> United States Army general

William Payne Jackson was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the American Indian Wars, Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, Moro Rebellion, Pancho Villa Expedition, and World War I he attained the rank of brigadier general during his career and major general on the army's retired list.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julius Penn</span> United States Army general

Julius A. Penn was a career officer in the United States Army. He attained the rank of brigadier general during World War I, and commanded 170th Infantry Brigade, 85th Division and 76th Infantry Brigade, 38th Division, in addition to serving as Chief of the Personnel Bureau for the American Expeditionary Forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LeRoy Springs Lyon</span> American military officer

Major General LeRoy Springs Lyon was a United States Army officer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louis A. Craig</span> United States Army general (1891–1984)

Louis A. Craig was a career officer in the United States Army. He attained the rank of major general, and served in both World War I and World War II. Craig served as a corps and division commander during World War II and was the Inspector General of the Army from 1948 to 1952.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Casper H. Conrad Jr.</span> U.S. Army brigadier general

Casper H. Conrad Jr. was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, Pancho Villa Expedition, and World War I, he served from 1895 to 1936 and attained the rank of brigadier general.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Renwick Smedberg Jr.</span> U.S. Army brigadier general

William Renwick Smedberg Jr. was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, and World War I, he attained the rank of brigadier general and was most notable for his command of the 305th Infantry Regiment, 153rd Infantry Brigade, 63rd Infantry Brigade, Military District of Arizona, 8th Cavalry Regiment, and 2nd Cavalry Brigade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin A. Poore</span> United States Army officer

Benjamin A. Poore was a career officer in the United States Army who attained the rank of major general. An 1886 graduate of the United States Military Academy, he was a veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, World War I, and Occupation of the Rhineland, and commanded several Infantry brigades as well as the 4th Division and Seventh Corps Area. Poore's awards included the Distinguished Service Cross, Army Distinguished Service Medal, and two awards of the Silver Star, as well as several foreign decorations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mathew C. Smith</span> U.S. Army brigadier general

Mathew Charles Smith was a career officer in the United States Army. An 1893 graduate of the United States Military Academy, he was a veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, the Pancho Villa Expedition, and World War I and served from 1893 to 1932. He attained the rank of brigadier general and his command assignments included the 129th Infantry Regiment, 309th Cavalry Regiment, 56th Field Artillery Regiment, 95th Division, and Panama Pacific General Depot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John S. Winn</span> U.S. Army brigadier general

John S. Winn, was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, United States occupation of Veracruz, Pancho Villa Expedition, World War I, and the Occupation of the Rhineland, and he attained the rank of brigadier general. Winn commanded brigades in France during the First World War, and was a recipient of the Silver Star and the French Legion of Honor (Officer).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert D. Walsh</span> U.S. Army brigadier general (1861–1928)

Robert Douglas Walsh was a career officer in the United States Army. An 1883 graduate of the United States Military Academy, he was a veteran of the American Indian Wars, Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, Pancho Villa Expedition, and World War I. Walsh served until retiring in 1919, and was a recipient of the Army Distinguished Service Medal and French Legion of Honor (Commander).

References

  1. 1 2 Marquis Who's Who, Inc. Who Was Who in American History, the Military. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who, 1975. P. 30ISBN 0837932017 OCLC   657162692
  2. 1 2 3 Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. Generals in Khaki. Raleigh, NC: Pentland Press, 1998. pp. 23 –24 ISBN   1571970886 OCLC   231779136
  3. Valor Awards for George Columbus Barnhardt. Military Times, n.d. Web. 12 Aug. 2016.
  4. "Biography of George Columbus Barnhardt". Digital Collections. East Carolina University. 1930–1939. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  5. "Troops In Tribute to Gen. Bernhardt". Fort Worth Record-Telegram. Fort Worth, TX. December 13, 1930. p. 3 via Newspapers.com.

Bibliography

Military offices
Preceded by Commanding General 1st Cavalry Division
October–December 1930
Succeeded by