Herbert Jermain Slocum (April 25, 1855 - March 29, 1928) was in charge of the 13th Cavalry Regiment during the Battle of Columbus, New Mexico in 1916 where

Pancho Villa Francisco "Pancho" Villa (, Orozco rebelled in March 1912, both for Madero's continuing failure to enact land reform and because he felt insufficiently rewarded for his role in bringing the new president to power. At the request of Madero's c ...

burned several buildings in

Columbus, New Mexico Columbus is a village in Luna County, New Mexico, United States, about north of the Mexican border. It is considered a place of historical interest, as the scene of a 1916 attack by Mexican revolutionary leader Francisco "Pancho" Villa that cau ...

, stole weapons and horses and killed 18 Americans.

Biography

Colonel Herbert J. Slocum was born on April 25, 1855, in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wi ...

to Colonel Joseph Jermain Slocum (1833-?) and Sallie Hommedieu. He was an eighth generation descendant of

Plymouth Colony Plymouth Colony (sometimes Plimouth) was, from 1620 to 1691, the first permanent English colony in New England and the second permanent English colony in North America, after the Jamestown Colony. It was first settled by the passengers on the ...

militia commander Captain Myles Standish. Slocum was appointed to 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 ...

on July 1, 1872, but left the academy shortly after failing to graduate in 1876. Nevertheless, he received a commission in the US Army shortly afterwards. Solcum was assigned to the 7th Cavalry Regiment where he rose to the rank of captain in 1896. He spent most of his early career posted in the

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of N ...

. He graduated from the Infantry and Cavalry School in 1883. During 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 = (cloc ...

, Slocum was commissioned as major in the Inspector General branch in May 1898 and reverted to his permanent rank of captain a year later. He served in the occupation of Cuba from 1901 to 1902 and the

Philippine Insurrection The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

from 1905 to 1906. He was stationed in the Mid-West (mostly at

Fort Riley Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Ge ...

in Kansas) from 1906 to 1910. He returned to the Philippines in 1911. In August 1912, Slocum was promoted to colonel and assigned to

Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., and the oldest perma ...

in Kansas. On September 1, 1914, he took command of the 13th Cavalry Regiment at Cavalry Camp Columbus in

. He commanded the regiment during the Battle of Columbus on March 9, 1916, where Mexican revolutionary

burned several buildings in

. Although Villa's forces were successful in capturing 300 rifles and shotguns, 80 horses, and 30 mules it came at the cost of at least 70 of his men being killed compared with American casualties of 8 soldiers and 10 civilians (including a pregnant woman) killed. Slocum was exonerated for his failure to prevent the attack by a board of inquiry led by

United States Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

Newton Diehl Baker, Jr. Solcum remained on active duty with the Army through

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and retired from the Army when he reached the mandatory retirement age of 64 on April 25, 1919. Colonel Slocum died on March 29, 1928, in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

and is buried in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. His estate was valued at over 3 million dollars.

Memberships

Colonel Slocum was a hereditary member of the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...

, the

Order of the Indian Wars of the United States The Order of the Indian Wars of the United States (OIWUS) is a military society founded in 1896 by officers of the United States Army who served in campaigns against Native Americans from the American Revolution to the late 19th century. Histo ...

, the Society of Colonial Wars and the General Society of Mayflower Descendants.

Military awards

* Indian Campaign Medal *

Spanish War Service Medal The Spanish War Service Medal was a United States military medal of the U.S. Army which was established by an act of the U.S. Congress on 9 July 1918 (40 Stat. 873). The medal recognizes those members of the Army and of the U.S. Volunteers who per ...

Army of Cuban Occupation Medal The Army of Cuban Occupation Medal was a military award created by the United States War Department in June 1915. The medal recognizes those service members who performed garrison occupation duty in the United States Protectorate over Cuba, follo ...

Philippine Campaign Medal The Philippine Campaign Medal is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created to denote service of U.S. military men in the Philippine–American War between the years of 1899 an ...

* Cuban Pacification Medal *

Mexican Border Service Medal The Mexican Border Service Medal was a U.S. service medal established by an Act of Congress on July 9, 1918. It was awarded for service between May 9, 1916 and March 24, 1917, or with the Mexican Border Patrol between January 1, 1916 to April ...

* World War I Victory Medal

Dates of rank

*Cadet,

- 1 July 1872 *2nd Lieutenant, 25th Infantry - 26 July 1876 *2nd Lieutenant, 2nd Cavalry - 18 August 1876 *2nd Lieutenant, 7th Cavalry - 20 September 1876 (to rank from 28 July 1876) *Brevet 1st Lieutenant - 13 September 1877 (awarded on 27 February 1890) *1st Lieutenant, 7th Cavalry - 22 September 1883 *Captain, 7th Cavalry - 26 August 1896 *Major, Inspector General, Volunteers - 24 May 1898 *Discharged from Volunteers - 12 May 1899 *Captain, Quartermaster Corps - 25 July 1902 *Major, 1st Cavalry - 26 August 1903 *Major, 2nd Cavalry - 16 October 1903 *Major, 7th Cavalry - 26 February 1908 *Lieutenant Colonel, Cavalry (detached service) - 3 March 1911 *Colonel, Cavalry (detached service) - 2 August 1912 *Colonel, Cavalry, Commandant, United States Military Prison, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas (rank and position indicated on an August 17, 1914 Memorandum; sent from “The Adjutant General of the Army,” to Colonel Slocum) *Colonel, 13th Cavalry - 1 September 1914 *Colonel, Retired List - April 25, 1919 Official Register of Commissioned Officers of the United States Army. 1921. pg. 1221.

References

External links

Herbert Jermain Slocum
at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Slocum, Herbert Jermain 1855 births 1928 deaths United States Military Academy alumni United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army colonels American military personnel of the Spanish–American War People from Cincinnati Burials at Arlington National Cemetery