Frank Parker (September 21, 1872 – March 13, 1947) was a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. His awards include the Army Distinguished Service Medal, two Silver Star Citations, and numerous foreign decorations and civilian accolades.

Early life

Frank Parker was born September 21, 1872 in

Georgetown County, South Carolina Georgetown County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 63,404. Its county seat is Georgetown. The county was founded in 1769. It is named for George III of the United Kingdom. Geo ...

. He was descended from John Parker, Arthur Middleton,

Thomas Heyward Thomas Heyward Jr. (July 28, 1746 – March 6, 1809) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, jurist, and politician. Heyward was active politically during the Revolutionary Era. As a member of the Continental Congress representing South Caroli ...

and John Rutledge. Parker attended the University of South Carolina, where he was a member of

Phi Kappa Psi Phi Kappa Psi (), commonly known as Phi Psi, is an American collegiate social fraternity that was founded by William Henry Letterman and Charles Page Thomas Moore in Widow Letterman's home on the campus of Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pen ...

fraternity. He subsequently attended the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

and graduated in 1894, after which he served in the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

in 1898 and

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

from 1899 to 1900. He also served as an instructor at the United States Military Academy from 1900 to 1903. In 1904, Parker graduated from the Cavalry School in

Saumur Saumur () is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France. The town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgueil, Coteaux du Layon, etc.. Saumur statio ...

, France, and served as military attaché,

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

, from 1904 to 1905,

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, Argentina, from 1905 to 1906, and Cuba in 1906 to 1908. He was an instructor and organizer of cavalry in Cuba from 1909 to 1912. In 1912, Parker attended the

École Supérieure de Guerre The ''École supérieure de guerre'' ("Superior School of Warfare") was the most senior military education institute and staff college of the French Army, from 1876 until 1993, when it was merged into the inter-service ' (Joint Defense College), wh ...

, France. He was a member of the Cavalry Board from 1913 to 1914.

World War I

Parker returned to the École Supérieure de Guerre from 1914 to 1915. He was a United States observer with French armies in field from 1916 to 1917, and then served as chief of American Military Mission at French General Headquarters. With the

American entry into World War I American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

in 1917, Parker was promoted to

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

and was the commander 18th Infantry and 1st Infantry Brigade and then was appointed commander, 1st Division, American Expeditionary Force, in October 1918.

Post-war career

Parker was recommended for promotion to major general by General John J. Pershing, but the

Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...

stopped all promotions of general officers. In 1920, he graduated from the École Supérieure de Guerre, France and remained there as a professor while a student at the Centre des Hautes Études from 1920 to 1921. Then, he graduated and instructed at the Command and Staff School, Fort Leavenworth, in 1922, was graduate and instructor at the Army War College from 1923 to 1924. From 1925 to 1927 he commanded a brigade of the 1st Division. In 1927, Parker received the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

from the University of South Carolina. He was Assistant Chief of Staff from 1927 to 1929, and commander of the

Sixth Corps Area Sixth Corps Area was a Corps area, effectively a military district, of the United States Army from 1921 to the 1940s. The headquarters was established at Fort Sheridan, Illinois, in August 1920, from portions of the former Central Department, but t ...

. He was promoted to major general in 1929, and from 1932 to 1933 he headed the

Philippine Department The Philippine Department (Filipino: ''Kagawaran ng Pilipinas/Hukbong Kagawaran ng Pilipinas'') was a regular United States Army organization whose mission was to defend the Philippine Islands and train the Philippine Army. On 9 April 1942, durin ...

. In 1933,

received a degree in Agriculture and Applied Science from

Michigan State College Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

. He was decorated with

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( it, Ordine della Corona d'Italia, italic=no or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for civi ...

for his service in connection with aid for transatlantic flight of

Italo Balbo Italo Balbo (6 June 1896 – 28 June 1940) was an Italian fascist politician and Blackshirts' leader who served as Italy's Marshal of the Air Force, Governor-General of Libya and Commander-in-Chief of Italian North Africa. Due to his young a ...

. From 1933 to 1935,

commanded the 1st Division. In February 1936, he took command of the

Eighth Corps Area A Corps area was a geographically-based organizational structure (military district) of the United States Army used to accomplish administrative, training and tactical tasks from 1920 to 1942. Each corps area included divisions of the Regular Army ...

and commanded the Third Army from March to September 1936.

Retirement

After his retirement on September 30, 1936, Parker made his home in Chicago. He served as the Executive Director of the Illinois War Council during World War II. Parker died on March 13, 1947 in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and was buried at Mansfield City Cemetery in

Mansfield, Ohio Mansfield is a city in and the county seat of Richland County, Ohio, United States. Located midway between Columbus and Cleveland via Interstate 71, it is part of Northeast Ohio region in the western foothills of the Allegheny Plateau. The city ...

.Roll of Honor
/ref> Parker was married to Katherine Hamilton Lahm.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Frank 1872 births United States military attachés Military personnel from South Carolina United States Military Academy faculty 1947 deaths American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Army generals of World War I United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Military Academy alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army War College alumni People from Georgetown County, South Carolina United States Army generals United States Army War College faculty United States Army Command and General Staff College faculty