Raymond O. Barton
Raymond Oscar Barton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nickname(s) | "Tubby" |
| Born | August 22, 1889 Granada, Colorado, United States |
| Died | February 27, 1963 (aged 73) Augusta, Georgia, United States |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/ |  United States Army |
| Years of service | 1912–1946 |
| Rank |  Major General |
| Service number | 0-3401 |
| Unit |  Infantry Branch |
| Commands held | 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment 8th Infantry Regiment 4th Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Army Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star Legion of Merit Bronze Star |
Major General Raymond Oscar "Tubby" Barton (August 22, 1889 – February 27, 1963) was a career officer in the United States Army and combat commander in World War I and World War II. As commander of the 4th Infantry Division during World War II, most notably during the Normandy landings in June 1944, Barton is one of only eleven U.S. Army general officers who commanded their divisions for the duration of their combat service.[1]
Early life and military career
Born on August 22, 1889, Raymond Oscar Barton graduated from the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York, with the class of 1912.[2] Many of his West Point classmates later became general officers during World War II as he did, such as Wade H. Haislip, John Shirley Wood, Walton Walker, Harry J. Malony, Walter M. Robertson, William H. Wilbur, Franklin C. Sibert, Robert McGowan Littlejohn, Stephen J. Chamberlin, Archibald Vincent Arnold, Albert E. Brown, Gilbert R. Cook and Millard Harmon.[2]
His first assignment was with the 30th Infantry Regiment, then serving in Alaska. He did not see any active service during World War I but, by now a captain, he served in Germany from 1919 to 1923 as commander of the 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment which was the last formation to leave Germany.
He later returned to the United States, now as a major, and attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College, along with the United States Army War College.[2] Barton then became a Professor of Military Science and Tactics at Georgetown University. While he was there, on August 1, 1935, he was promoted again, this time to lieutenant colonel.[3]
World War II
He commanded the 4th Infantry Division from 3 July 1942 to 26 December 1944 and led them into battle from D-Day at Utah Beach,[4] to the Liberation of Paris, and into the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest before leaving the command due to health problems on December 27, 1944.
During the war he became friends with Ernest Hemingway who sought his favor as the war correspondent assigned to the division and the two corresponded after.
Hemingway wrote to Barton:
You had one of the greatest divisions in American military history.
During the Battle of Hürtgen Forest on the Weisser Weh stream near Grosshau, Germany General Barton gave up his belt for tourniquet material to medic Russell J. York of his division at York's request. Lives were saved, and a Silver Star was personally awarded to Technician (Medical) 4th Grade York by General Barton for his actions.
Death
Barton died in 1963 and was buried at Westover Memorial Park in Augusta, Georgia.[5]
Popular culture
In the film The Longest Day he is played by Edmond O'Brien. He appears in a scene where he allows his assistant division commander, Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (played by Henry Fonda), to lead the division ashore at D-Day.
References
- ^ Order of Battle, p. 374.
- ^ a b c Collins 1994, p. 96.
- ^ https://generals.dk/general/Barton/Raymond_Oscar/USA.html
- ^ Harrison, Gordon A., (1951). - CHAPTER VIII: "The Sixth of June: Hitting the Beaches". - Cross Channel Attack. - Washington D.C.: Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army. CMH Pub 7-4. - p.302. - OCLC 1350280.
—REPRINT: (1984). - ISBN 978-0-318-22740-5 - ^ "Raymond O. Barton". Find a Grave. Retrieved October 30, 2010.
Bibliography
- Tom Carhart (2002). West Point Warriors: Profiles of Duty, Honor, and Country in Battle. ISBN 0-446-61125-5.
- James Lawton Collins Jr., David G. Chandler (1994). The D-Day Encyclopedia. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0132036215.
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External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
- Recipients of the Legion of Merit
- United States Military Academy alumni
- Operation Overlord people
- Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army)
- Recipients of the Silver Star
- Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France)
- 1889 births
- 1963 deaths
- People from Prowers County, Colorado
- United States Army personnel of World War I
- United States Army generals of World War II
- United States Army generals
- Military personnel from Colorado
- Georgetown University faculty
- United States Army War College alumni
- United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni