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 ...

Joseph Alfred Gaston (September 2, 1856 – March 31, 1937) was a

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 ...

officer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. 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 ...

, among other incidents and conflicts.

Early life

Gaston was born on September 2, 1856, in

Honey Brook, Pennsylvania Honey Brook is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population of the borough was 1,895 at the 2020 census. The borough is surrounded by Honey Brook Township, and both are referred to locally collectively as Honey Broo ...

. He attended

Wyoming Seminary , motto_translation = Truth, beauty, and goodness , address = 201 North Sprague Avenue , location = , region = , city = Kingston , county = Luzerne , st ...

and Pennsylvania's Commercial College. Afterward, he entered 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 ...

, graduating in 1881 and being commissioned into the

8th Cavalry Regiment The 8th Cavalry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army formed in 1866 during the American Indian Wars. The 8th Cavalry continued to serve under a number of designations, fighting in every other major U.S. conflict since, except Worl ...

Career

From 1881 to 1891, Gaston served on frontier duty, which mainly involved military actions against the

Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...

and

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...

. He participated in the

, serving in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

from 1899 to 1902, and he later went to the

Philippines 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 ...

. Gaston commanded permanent relief camps after the

1906 San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...

. He graduated from the

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military offic ...

in 1912, and between November 1913 and April 1914, after traveling again to the Philippines between 1908 and 1910, he commanded the Cavalry School 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 Gear ...

. Gaston later commanded the

6th Cavalry Regiment The 6th Cavalry ("Fighting Sixth'") is a regiment of the United States Army that began as a regiment of cavalry in the American Civil War. It currently is organized into aviation squadrons that are assigned to several different combat aviation ...

and served at the border with

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and on the

Pancho Villa Expedition The Pancho Villa Expedition—now known officially in the United States as the Mexican Expedition, but originally referred to as the "Punitive Expedition, U.S. Army"—was a military operation conducted by the United States Army against the p ...

in that capacity. Gaston was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

on August 5, 1917, and assumed command over the 165th Depot Brigade at

Fort Travis Fort Travis Seashore Park is also the historic Fort Travis, a military site with bunkers. The park is located in an area known as ''Bolivar Point'', on the extreme west side of the Bolivar Peninsula in Galveston County, Texas. Early history Me ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. He commanded the 19th Division, then the 90th Division from November 23 to December 27, 1917. He commanded the 74th Infantry Brigade, a unit of the 37th Division. From January to March 1918, he commanded the 11th Infantry Brigade, a unit of the 6th Division. He was commander of the 37th Division from April 25 to May 8, 1918. He commanded

Camp Meade, Maryland Fort George G. Meade is a United States Army installation located in Maryland, that includes the Defense Information School, the Defense Media Activity, the United States Army Field Band, and the headquarters of United States Cyber Command, the ...

, from June 1918 to February 5, 1919. In August 1918, he commanded the 11th Division. After reverting to his permanent rank of colonel, Gaston did recruiting duty in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He retired from the Army on September 2, 1920. Congress restored Gaston's brigadier general rank in June 1930.

Death and legacy

He died on March 31, 1937. He is buried at

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 ...

Personal life

Gaston married Lavinia Haskin (1866-1944), the daughter of Brigadier General William L. Haskin, on May 16, 1903.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaston, Joseph Alfred 1856 births 1937 deaths People from Honey Brook, Pennsylvania American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Army generals United States Military Academy alumni United States Army War College alumni Burials at Arlington National Cemetery United States Army generals of World War I Wyoming Seminary alumni 1906 San Francisco earthquake Military personnel from Pennsylvania United States Army Cavalry Branch personnel