George Bell Jr.
George Bell Jr. as commander of the 33rd Division in September 1918 towards the end of World War I.
Nickname(s)"Do It Now"[1][2][3]
BornJanuary 22, 1859 (1859-01-22)
Baltimore, Maryland, United States
DiedOctober 29, 1926 (1926-10-30) (aged 67)
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Buried
Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago, United States
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service1880–1923
Rank Major General
Service number0-38
Unit Infantry Branch
Commands held16th Regiment
El Paso District
33rd Division
Sixth Corps Area
Battles/warsAmerican Indian Wars
Spanish–American War
Philippine Insurrection
Pancho Villa Expedition
World War I
AwardsArmy Distinguished Service Medal
Legion of Honor
Croix de Guerre
RelationsGeorge Bell (1828–1907) (father)[4]
Robert Ransom Jr. (Father in law)[5]
Other workPresident, Hill State Bank, Chicago

Major General George Bell Jr. (January 22, 1859 – October 29, 1926) was a United States Army officer who is most notable for commanding the 33rd Division, an Army National Guard formation, during the final year of World War I.

Early life and start of military career

Born at Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland and 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] Among his fellow classmates there were several men who would, like Bell himself, eventually attain the rank of general officer, such as Charles J. Bailey, Henry G. Sharpe, William C. Rafferty, Frederick S. Strong, William C. Scott, Wilds P. Richardson, John L. Chamberlain, and George Washington Goethals.

After graduating in 1880 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 and passed the New York bar exam.[7][8]

Later career

George Bell Jr. in 1915.

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

King George V congratulates General Sir Henry Rawlinson on the Battle of Amiens at Molliens-au-Bois Chateau, the HQ of the U.S. 33rd Division, August 12, 1918. The King was received at the Chateau by General John J. Pershing and General Tasker H. Bliss (both can be seen in the background), while Major General George Bell Jr. can be seen next to Bliss.

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 H. 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 1944−1945.

Post World War I

After 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

Bell'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

After leaving the Army, Bell was elected President of Chicago's Hill State Bank.[16][17]

Death and burial

Bell died in Chicago on October 29, 1926. He was buried in Chicago's Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum.[18][19]

Legacy

Illinois' 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

  1. ↑ Delta Chi Fraternity, Delta Chi Quarterly, Volume 24, Issue 1, 1927, 6
  2. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "'Yellow Cross' Again Division From Prairies", May 18, 1919
  3. 1 2 Venzon 2013, p. 72.
  4. ↑ 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
  5. ↑ M.J. Ransom, Ransom Researcher, Issues 17–36, 1997, page 516
  6. ↑ Marquis Who's Who, Who Was Who in America with World Notables, Volume 1, 1943, page 80
  7. ↑ Empire State Society, Sons of the American Revolution, Register of the Empire State Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, 1899, page 87
  8. ↑ George Washington Cullum, Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy, Volume 3, 1891, page 339
  9. ↑ 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
  10. ↑ Los Angeles Times, Bell Succeeds Potts: Commander of Sixteenth Infantry Now on the Texas Border to Become Brigadier-General, May 4, 1914
  11. ↑ New York Times, 1,000 Men Reported in New Villa Band, September 3, 1916
  12. ↑ Frederic Louis Huidekoper, The history of the 33rd division, A.E.F., Volume 1, 1921, page 1
  13. ↑ Chicago Tribune, Gen. Bell, Head of Sixth Corps, to Leave Army, September 3, 1922
  14. ↑ Davis 1998, p. 30.
  15. ↑ "Valor awards for George Bell". Military Times.
  16. ↑ Commercial West, Co., Commercial West Magazine, Volume 44, 1923, page 29
  17. ↑ Chicago Daily News Co., The Chicago Daily News Almanac and Year Book for 1925, 1924, page 894
  18. ↑ Hartford Courtant, General Bell Dies--In Army Forty Years, October 29, 1926
  19. ↑ Baltimore Sun, Gen. George Bell, Jr. is Dead in Chicago, October 29, 1926
  20. ↑ State of Illinois, Illinois: A Descriptive and Historical Guide, 1939, page 440
  21. ↑ John Graf, Chicago's Parks: A Photographic History, 2000
  22. ↑ American Legion, American Legion magazine, Volume 106, 1979, page 90
  23. ↑ Beautiful Bermuda Publishing Company, Beautiful Bermuda: The Bermuda Blue Book, 1947, page 207

Bibliography

  • 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.
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