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 ...

Roger Baldwin Colton (December 15, 1887 – January 28, 1978) was an American military officer. He served as the United States Army Air Communications Officer of Technical Services during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

.Major General Roger Baldwin Colton a Biography
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Early life

Colton was born on December 15, 1887, in Jonesboro,

Burke County, North Carolina Burke County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 87,570. Its county seat is Morganton. Burke County is part of the Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area. ...

. He was the last of the eight brothers and sisters born to his parents of

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

descent. His father died when Colton was only six; his mother died when he was 16. His cousins were already raising his brother, Henry Elliott, and they took him in after the death of his mother.

Education

Colton's cousins sent him to the

Taft School The Taft School is a private, coeducational school located in Watertown, Connecticut, United States. It teaches students in 9th through 12th grades and post-graduates. About three-quarters of Taft's roughly 600 students live on the school's ...

from which he graduated at age 19. He later attended

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

. He graduated from Yale at the age of 22 with a Bachelor of Science degree from the Yale Sheffield School of Science and a membership in the

Sigma Xi Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society () is a highly prestigious, non-profit honor society for scientists and engineers. Sigma Xi was founded at Cornell University by a junior faculty member and a small group of graduate students in 1886 ...

and Theta Xi honorary societies.

Military service

General

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

credited Colton for his successful re-organization of the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

and final defeat of the Nazis at Kasserine Pass, and the

Invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis powers ( Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany). It bega ...

. This would later earn him a promotion in September 1944 to Major General of the Army. He was awarded the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

and the

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

for his technical and executive skills in development and supplying of vital communications equipment despite critical shortages of materials.

Later career

Following World War II, Colton joined the International Telephone & Telegraph Corporation's

Federal Telephone and Radio Corporation The Federal Telegraph Company was a United States manufacturing and communications company that played a pivotal role in the 20th century in the development of radio communications. Founded in Palo Alto, California in 1909 by Cyril Frank Elwell, t ...

division as a vice president. In 1950, he became president of Federal Telecommunications Laboratories, the company's research division.Aviation Week & Space Technology, Volume 52, page 11

Death

Colton died January 24, 1978, and was 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 ...

.Roger B. Colton Arlington Burial Site
ancestry.com

References

External links

at Rootsweb Ancestry

at Arlington National Cemetery {{DEFAULTSORT:Colton, Roger B. Burials at Arlington National Cemetery United States Army generals 1887 births 1978 deaths Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army)