Mark Leslie Hersey (December 1, 1863 – January 22, 1934) 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 ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

who commanded the 4th Division during

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 ...

Early life and education

Hersey was born in Maine on December 1, 1863, the son of George L. Hersey, and 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 ...

at West Point from 1883 to 1887. Prior to attending West Point, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Bates College Bates College () is a private liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian Houses as some of the dormitories. It maintains of nature p ...

. He graduated West Point on June 12, 1887, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant the same day. Among his fellow classmates included several general officers of the future, such as Charles Gerhardt, Charles S. Farnsworth,

Nathaniel Fish McClure Nathaniel Fish McClure (July 21, 1865 – June 26, 1942) was a United States Army officer in the early 20th century who became a brigadier general. He served in several conflicts, including World War I. Early life and education Nathaniel Fish ...

Michael Joseph Lenihan Brigadier General Michael Joseph Lenihan (May 2, 1865 – August 13, 1958) was a senior officer of the United States Army. He was involved in conflicts in the American Western Frontier, the Philippines, and World War I, where he commanded the 83r ...

, Herman Hall,

William Weigel Major general (United States), Major General William Weigel (August 25, 1863 – March 4, 1936) was a United States Army officer who, throughout his long military career, served in numerous conflicts and wars, most notably towards the end of World ...

, Ernest Hinds, Ulysses G. McAlexander, James Theodore Dean,

Frank Herman Albright Frank Herman Albright (August 2, 1865 – July 21, 1940) was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, World War I, he attained the rank of brigadier general, and was most nota ...

, Marcus Daniel Cronin, George Owen Squier, Thomas Grafton Hanson,

George Washington Gatchell Brigadier General George Washington Gatchell (February 22, 1865 – February 4, 1939) was a United States Army officer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He served in several conflicts, including the Sioux Wars, Spanish–American War, an ...

Alexander Lucian Dade Alexander Lucian Dade (18 July 1863 – 8 January 1927) was a United States military officer. He took part in a number of U.S. military conflicts, including the Spanish–American War and Philippine–American War. Early life and education Da ...

and Edmund Wittenmyer. He was promoted to first lieutenant in 1894.

Wars and conflicts

He was a veteran of 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 ...

and served as a quartermaster for the 12th Infantry in the Fifth Army Corps in the Santiago Campaign. Hersey was promoted to captain in 1899 and served as part of the China Relief Expedition during the Boxer Rebellion. In 1902, he received a Master of Arts degree from Bates College. Following 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 ...

, Hersey served as a colonel with the

Philippine Constabulary The Philippine Constabulary (PC; tl, Hukbóng Pamayapà ng Pilipinas, ''HPP''; es, Policía de Filipinas, ''PF'') was a gendarmerie-type police force of the Philippines from 1901 to 1991, and the predecessor to the Philippine National Po ...

for ten years. Hersey was promoted to major in 1911 and to lieutenant colonel in 1916. He served under General John J. Pershing during the punitive expedition in Mexico in 1916.

First World War

Hersey was promoted to colonel in May 1917, shortly after the United States declaring war on Germany. He was promoted to brigadier general in National Army (i.e. a temporary promotion) in August 1917 and assigned as the commander of the 155th Infantry Brigade which was part of the 78th Division. The 78th Division was deployed to France in May and June 1918. He commanded the 155th Infantry Brigade during the later stages of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive and led it in a successful assault on German positions in the Bois des Loges near

Tracy-le-Mont Tracy-le-Mont () is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. See also *Communes of the Oise department The following is a list of the 679 communes of the Oise department of France. The communes cooperate in the following interco ...

. Hersey was promoted to major general in the National Army in October 1918 and assumed command of the 4th Division in France on 31st of the same month—shortly before 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 ...

which ended hostilities on November 11. He commanded the 4th Division during the occupation of Germany before it returned to the United States. Hersey was awarded the Army Distinguished Service Medal for his leadership of both the 155th Brigade and the 4th Division during the war. The medal's citation reads:

Post-war career

After returning from France, Hersey received honorary Doctor of Laws degrees (LL.D.) from Bates College and the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classifie ...

. Hersey reverted to his permanent rank of colonel in August 1919, graduated from the Army War College in 1920 and was promoted to brigadier general in July of the same year. He was promoted to major general shortly before his retirement from the Army, at his own request, in November 1924.

Death and burial

General Hersey died on January 22, 1934, and was 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 ...

Memberships

He was a member of the Pennsylvania Commandery of the

Military Order of Foreign Wars The Military Order of Foreign Wars of the United States (MOFW) is one of the oldest veterans' and hereditary associations in the nation with a membership that includes officers and their hereditary descendants from all of the Armed Services. Memb ...

. He was also a member of the Military Order of the World War and served as its national commander in 1926.

Family

Hersey married Elizabeth Noyes on September 16, 1887. Together, they had three children: Mark Leslie, Dorothy, and Alice Elizabeth. She died on April 5, 1932, and is buried beside him at Arlington National Cemetery. His son, Mark L. Hersey, Jr. (1888–1974), was an officer in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. He received the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

for distinguished service while commanding the destroyer USS ''Sampson'' (DD-63) during the First World War. He was the commanding officer of

Naval Station Guantanamo Bay Guantanamo Bay Naval Base ( es, Base Naval de la Bahía de Guantánamo), officially known as Naval Station Guantanamo Bay or NSGB, (also called GTMO, pronounced Gitmo as jargon by members of the U.S. military) is a United States military bas ...

from May 1936 to June 1938. He rose to the rank of

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

during the Second World War. He and his wife are buried near his parents.

Legacy

The , launched April 1944, was named in his honor.

Awards

* Distinguished Service Medal * Indian Campaign Medal *

Spanish Campaign Medal The Spanish Campaign Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces which recognized those men of the U.S. military who had served in the Spanish–American War. Although a single decoration, there were two versions of the Spanish C ...

China Relief Expedition Medal The China Relief Expedition Medal was a decoration of the United States military which was issued to members of both the United States Navy and the United States Marines for service in the China Relief Expedition between 1900 and 1901 during the ...

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 ...

Mexican Service Medal The Mexican Service Medal is an award of the United States military for service in Mexico from 1911 to 1919. History The Mexican Service Medal awarded by the Army was established by General Orders of the United States War Department on December ...

* Victory Medal with four campaign stars *

Army of Occupation of Germany Medal The Army of Occupation of Germany Medal is a U.S. Army service medal established by an Act of Congress on November 21, 1941, (55 Stat 781). The military award recognized service in Germany or Austria-Hungary between November 12, 1918 and July 1 ...

* Commander, Legion of Honor (France) * Croix de Guerre with palm (France)

Dates of rank

* 2nd Lieutenant – 12 June 1887 * 1st Lieutenant – 16 December 1894 * Captain – 2 March 1899 * Major – 3 March 1911 * Lieutenant Colonel – 1 July 1916 * Colonel – 15 May 1917 * Brigadier General, National Army – 5 August 1917 (accepted 28 August 1917) * Major General, National Army – 1 October 1918 (accepted 14 October 1918) * Discharged from National Army – 31 August 1919 * Brigadier General – 3 July 1920 (accepted 17 July 1920) * Major General – 20 September 1924 * Retired – 2 November 1924''Official Register of Officers of the U.S. Army''. 1925. pg. 730.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hersey, Mark Leslie 1863 births 1934 deaths United States Army Infantry Branch personnel United States Army generals of World War I United States Military Academy alumni Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Recipients of the Legion of Honour Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States Army generals American military personnel of the Spanish–American War American military personnel of the Philippine–American War People from Penobscot County, Maine Military personnel from Maine