George Bell Jr. (January 22, 1859 – October 29, 1926) was a United States Army Major General who commanded the 33rd Infantry Division, an Army National Guard formation, during the final year of World War I.
George Bell Jr. | |
|---|---|
_(cropped)_(cropped).jpg) Bell as commander of the 33rd Infantry Division in September 1918 towards the end of World War I | |
| Nickname(s) | "Do It Now"[1][2][3] |
| Born | January 22, 1859 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Died | October 29, 1926 (aged 67) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Buried | Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service |  United States Army |
| Years of service | 1880–1923 |
| Rank |  Major General |
| Service number | 0-38 |
| Unit |  Infantry Branch |
| Commands | 16th Regiment El Paso District 33rd Division Sixth Corps Area |
| Battles / wars | American Indian Wars Spanish–American War Philippine Insurrection Pancho Villa Expedition World War I |
| Awards | Army Distinguished Service Medal Legion of Honor Croix de Guerre |
| Relations | George Bell (1828–1907) (father)[4] Robert Ransom Jr. (Father in law)[5] |
| Other work | President, Hill State Bank, Chicago |
Early life and education
editBell was born on January 22, 1859, at Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Brigadier General George Bell (1828–1907), a veteran of the American Civil War, and his wife, Isabella McCormick Bell, he attended the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York.[6] His fellow classmates at the U.S. Military included several men who would also eventually attained the rank of brigadier general or higher in their military careers, including James B. Aleshire, Charles Justin Bailey, John Loomis Chamberlain, James Brailsford Erwin, George Washington Goethals, Henry Granville Sharpe, Frederick S. Strong, and others.
Career
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In June 1880, Bell graduated 43rd in his U.S. Military Academy class of 52, and became an infantry officer. He was posted to assignments throughout the country, including Fort Maginnis, Fort Shaw, Fort Ellis, Fort Snelling, and Fort Missoula. In the 1890s, he served as professor of military science at Cornell University. In 1894, he received a law degree from Cornell Law School and passed the New York bar exam.[7][8]
He served in the Spanish–American War's Santiago Campaign and the Samar Campaign of the Philippine Insurrection. In 1907, Bell was appointed to the Infantry Equipment Board, taking part in the design of many items that were later used in World War I.[9]
In 1913, Bell assumed command of the 16th Regiment at The Presidio in San Francisco.[10] In 1916 he was promoted to brigadier general and assigned to head the El Paso District during the Pancho Villa Expedition.[3][11]
World War I
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Shortly after the American entry into World War I in April 1917, Bell was promoted to major general and assigned to command the Illinois National Guard's 33rd Division. He commanded throughout the war, with the 33rd, after months of strenuous training in the United States and arriving on the Western Front in May 1918, attaining distinction as the only American division to fight under its own flag and as part of British Empire (Australian) and French corps.[12] The 33rd Division, under Bell's leadership, took part in the Battle of Hamel, the Second Battle of the Somme, the Battle of Saint-Mihiel and the Meuse–Argonne offensive, the largest battle in the history of the U.S. Army. By the time the war ended due to the Armistice with Germany in November 1918, the division had sustained over 6,800 casualties.
William Hood Simpson served alongside Bell throughout most of the American involvement in the war. He later became a full general and commanded the U.S. Ninth Army in World War II from 1944 to 1945.
Post World War I
editAfter the war he commanded the Sixth Corps Area, with headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, until reaching the mandatory retirement in 1923 at age 64.[13]
Awards and decorations
editBell's awards included the Distinguished Service Medal, and his foreign honors included the French Croix de Guerre with Palm and the Legion of Honor, as well as appointment as a Knight Commander of England's Order of St. Michael and St. George.[14] The citation to 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 Major General George Bell, Jr., 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. General Bell led his command with distinction, in the offensive operations with the British which resulted in the capture of Hamel and Hamel Woods, and in the fighting on the Meuse that gained the villages of Marcheville, St. Hilaire, and a portion of Bois-de-Forges. The successful operations of the division which he trained and commanded in combat were greatly influenced by his energy and abilities as a commander.[15]
Post military career
editAfter leaving the Army, Bell was elected President of Chicago's Hill State Bank.[16][17]
Death and burial
editBell died in Chicago, on October 29, 1926, at age 57. He was buried in Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum in Chicago.[18][19]
Legacy
editIllinois' Bell Bowl Prairie amphitheater[20] and Chicago's Bell Park[21] and George Bell American Legion Post[22] are named for him. Fort Bell in Bermuda was also named for him.[23]
References
edit- ^ Delta Chi Fraternity, Delta Chi Quarterly, Volume 24, Issue 1, 1927, 6
- ^ Chicago Tribune, "'Yellow Cross' Again Division From Prairies", May 18, 1919
- ^ a b Venzon 2013, p. 72.
- ^ Sons of the American Revolution, [Sons of the American Revolution, A National Register of the Society, Sons of the American Revolution, Volume 1, 1902, page 748
- ^ M.J. Ransom, Ransom Researcher, Issues 17–36, 1997, page 516
- ^ Marquis Who's Who, Who Was Who in America with World Notables, Volume 1, 1943, page 80
- ^ Empire State Society, Sons of the American Revolution, Register of the Empire State Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, 1899, page 87
- ^ George Washington Cullum, Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy, Volume 3, 1891, page 339
- ^ George Washington Cullum, Edward Singleton Holden, Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy, Volume VI-A, 1920, pages 302 to 304
- ^ Los Angeles Times, Bell Succeeds Potts: Commander of Sixteenth Infantry Now on the Texas Border to Become Brigadier-General, May 4, 1914
- ^ New York Times, 1,000 Men Reported in New Villa Band, September 3, 1916
- ^ Frederic Louis Huidekoper, The history of the 33rd division, A.E.F., Volume 1, 1921, page 1
- ^ Chicago Tribune, Gen. Bell, Head of Sixth Corps, to Leave Army, September 3, 1922
- ^ Davis 1998, p. 30.
- ^ "Valor awards for George Bell". Military Times.
- ^ Commercial West, Co., Commercial West Magazine, Volume 44, 1923, page 29
- ^ Chicago Daily News Co., The Chicago Daily News Almanac and Year Book for 1925, 1924, page 894
- ^ Hartford Courtant, General Bell Dies--In Army Forty Years, October 29, 1926
- ^ Baltimore Sun, Gen. George Bell, Jr. is Dead in Chicago[dead link], October 29, 1926
- ^ State of Illinois, Illinois: A Descriptive and Historical Guide, 1939, page 440
- ^ John Graf, Chicago's Parks: A Photographic History, 2000
- ^ American Legion, American Legion magazine, Volume 106, 1979, page 90
- ^ Beautiful Bermuda Publishing Company, Beautiful Bermuda: The Bermuda Blue Book, 1947, page 207
Bibliography
edit- Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. (1998). Generals in Khaki. Raleigh, North Carolina: Pentland Press. ISBN 1571970886. OCLC 40298151.
- Venzon, Anne Cipriano (2013). The United States in the First World War: an Encyclopedia. Hoboken, NJ: Taylor and Francis. ISBN 978-1-135-68453-2. OCLC 865332376.
External links
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- George Bell Jr. at Find a Grave
- Distinguished Service Medal Citation, George Bell Jr., Military Times Hall of Valor